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THE 



RICHES- OF BUNYAN: 



SELECTED FROM HIS WORKS, 



THE AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 



BY REV. JEREMIAH CHAPLIN. 



WITH AN INTRODUCTORY NOTICE 



REV. WILLIAM R. WILLIAMS, D.D. 



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PUBLISHED BY THE 
AMERICAN TRACT SOCIETY, 

150 NASSAU-STREET, NEW YORK. ^ 




J*u+i zz./rrv. 



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Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1850, by 
REV. JEREMIAH CHAPLIN, 
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, for the South- 
ern District of New York. 

Right of publishing transferred to the American Tract Society, 



> * 



33 






CONTENTS. 



Prefatory notice, by Rev. Dr. Williams . . . Page 9 

I. GOD 23 

Glory of God 23 

Majesty of God . . 24 

Justice of God •'-".'• • 27 

Holiness of God 27 

Sovereignty of God ....... 27 

Sovereignty of God in conversion . . . . .28 

Providence of God in conversion ..... 28 

Condescension of God ....... 29 

Mercy of God .29 

God the justifler . . . . . . . .30 

Glory of God in redemption . . . . . 30 

God a father . . .32 

Faithfulness of God . . . . . . . 33 

Presence of God ........ 33 

God's repenting ........ 34 

Providence of God ........ 34 

. THE TRINITY 37 

EL THE SCRIPTURES 40 

IV. MAN 45 

The image of God ........ 45 

Value of the soul ....... 45 

Adam's transgression, . . . . . . .46 

Depravity of Nature ....... 47 

Love of sin, ......... 47 

Sin 48 

Pride 50 

Envy . .51 

Drunkenness ........ 51 

Sinners ......... 52 

Sinful ease ......*.. 53 

The child and the bird ...... 54 

The sinner warned ....... 55 

Conscience ......... 61 

A good conscience ........ 62 

A tender conscience . . . . . . . 63 

A guilty conscience ....... 63 



CONTENTS. 



V. THE LAW 

Its nature and effects . 
The law and trie gospel 
The law a rule of life . 



VI. DIVINE GRACE . 

Grace, love, and mercy 
Grace described 
Operation of grace 
Grace abused 
Grace, the water of life 



VII. CHBJST .... 
The incarnation of Christ 
The humanity of Christ . 
The humiliation of Christ 
The glory of Christ 
The love of Christ 
The righteousness of Christ 
Christ a complete Saviour 
Christ not a Saviour by his 
Christ a teacher . 
The death of Christ 
The resurrection of Christ 
The glorification of Christ 
The offices of Christ 
Christ an intercessor 
Christ an advocate 



example 



VIII. THE HOLY SPIRIT 



IX. 



JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH 

Faith the instrumental cause of salvation 
True and false faith distinguished 
Faith and works ..... 
Justification and sanctification distinguished 

X. CONVICTION OF SIN 

XL CONVERSION 

The difficulty of conversion 
Conversion the power of God 
Regeneration ...... 

The strait gate ..... 

Coming to Christ ..... 

Temptations of the soul coming to Christ 
Trials and encouragements of the awakened 
Fears in coming to Christ 



CONTENTS. 5 

Mercy's experience ....... Page 167 

Fears and encouragements of the awakened . . 168 

Despair of mercy unreasonable . . . . .171 

Power of the gospel . . . . . . . 174 

Bunyan's conversion . . . . . . .176 

Fears about election . . . . . . 180 

Young converts -'"»., 180 

XII. THE CHRISTIAN DESCRIBED .... 182 

Happiness of the Christian . . . . . . 182 

Dignity of the Christian . . ... . 182 

The family in heaven and earth . . . . . 185 

Feebleness of the Christian . . . . . .185 

The Christian under a sense of guilt — Bunyan's experience 186 
Sin and the Saviour . . . . . . .188 

The Christian in darkness . . . . . .189 

The valley of the shadow of death . . . . 189 

The Christian doubting . . . . . . .190 

Indwelling sua . . . ... . . 192 

Mr. Fearing 193 

Encouragement for the doubting Christian . . .194 

Adoption 195 

Christ our life . 199 

Union with Christ 200 

Life of faith 200 

Divine love improved 203 

Holy living . 206 

Opportunities improved . . . • . .207 

Good works . 208 

Self-denial 209 

Obedience in little things 210 

Motives to holy living 210 

Obedience rewarded . . . . • .215 

Self-examination . . . . • . . .217 

Watchfulness 218 

Constitution-sins . . . . • • . .218 
The Christian professor admonished .... 220 
Failings and sins of Christians ..... 221 
The backslider 222 

XIII. THE CHRISTIAN RACE . . . . .226 

XIV. TRIALS OF THE CHRISTIAN .... 237 

Affliction — its nature and benefits . . . . .237 

Persecution 242 

Bimyan's trial and imprisonment . . . ; . 251 

Martyrs . . . . . . . . 258 



CONTENTS. 



Christian courage 
The Christian warfare 
The Christian armor . 



XV. TEMPTATIONS ... 

Temptations of Satan . 
Temptations of the world 
Encouragements for the tempted 
Buny an's temptations 

XVI. SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS 

XVII. THE PROMISES 

XVIII. CHRISTIAN GRACES 

Eaith 

Trust 

Eaith and hope . . 

Hope 

Patience ..... 
Love . . . . 

Fear 

Humility . . . . 
Zeal ..... 
Repentance . • . . 



XIX. PRAYER 

Characteristics of prayer 

Preparation for prayer 

The throne of grace 

Prayer in the name of Christ . 

Benefit of prayer 

Discouragements in prayer 

Discouragements to prayer removed 

Affectionate confidence in prayer 

God's method of answering prayer 

Relief in prayer . 

Faith in prayer .... 

Wrestling prayer . . • 

The publican's prayer . 

Posture in prayer 

Closet-iniquity .... 

Formal prayer .... 

The prayerless .... 

XX. FALSE PROFESSION . 

Hypocrisy ..... 
Christ's love abused 
Perversion of the truth 



CONTENTS. 



A Latitudinarian .... 
Changing sins ..... 
The unholy professor • . • 

The fruitless professor • 

The unpardonable sin • • 
The man in the iron cage 

XXI. THE CHURCH . . . 

From the preface to the "Holy City" 
Church-fellowship .... 
The church a light . 
Spiritual character of the church 
Warning to the professor 
Church-order ..... 
The church in affliction 
Satan's hostility to the church 
Security of the church 
Future glory of the church 

XXII. THE MINISTRY . 

Importance of the ministry 

Duty of churches to the ministry . 

Different classes of ministers . 

Duty of ministers .... 

Ministers warned 

Ministers servants of the church . 

Gifts and grace in ministers 

The false minister .... 

The minisffer at the day of judgment 

Bunyan's ministry .... 

Bunyan's character and principles . 

XXIII. ANTICHRIST 

Antichrist described 

Rise and progress of antichrist 

Corruption of the church by antichrist 

Conflict between the church and antichrist 

Fall of antichrist .... 

Manner of antichrist's destruction 

Present state of antichrist 

Slaying of the witnesses 

Reasons for antichrist's destruction . 

Time of antichrist's destruction . 

Signs of antichrist's destruction 

Hope of antichrist's destruction . 

Effects of antichrist's destruction 

Warning against a return to antichrist 



Page 332 
. 334 

336 
. 339 

356 
. 356 

362 
. 362 

363 
. 363 

364 
. 365 

365 
. 365 

366 
. 366 

377 



380 
380 
380 
380 
382 
383 
384 
384 
386 
389 
390 
393 

396 
396 
397 
400 
402 
403 
406 
408 
409 
409 
412 
414 
415 
415 
417 



CONTENTS. 



Introduction to the "Holy City" 
The wooden cross 



XXIV. DEATH 

Death of the sinner .... 

Death of the Christian 

The Christian wishing to depart 

The dying Christian .... 

Death of Mr. B adman's wife . 

Death of Standfast .... 

Death of Christian and Hopeful 

IB uny an's death ..... 

XXV. THE RESURRECTION . 

Salvation complete at the resurrection 

XXVI. THE JUDGMENT .... 

The saints judged .... 

Saints rewarded at the judgment 
Sinners judged ..... 
Sinners without excuse at the judgment 
"Ignorance" condemned at the judgment 

XXVII. HEAVEN ..... 

Happiness and glory of heaven 
Employments of heaven ... 
Soul and body glorified in heaven 
Christ the glory of heaven 
The glory of salvation .... 
Heaven ...... 



XXVIII. HELL .... 

XXIX. MISCELLANEOUS . 

The Sabbath 

Woman . 

The family . 

Bunyan's domestic character . 

Dr. Owen .... 

Truth 

Style 

The old and new dispensations 
The Pilgrim in New England 

Notices of Bunyan . 



PREFATORY NOTICE 



The subscriber lias been requested by his friend 
the Rev. Jeremiah Chaplin, the worthy son of an 
honored father,* and the editor of the present selec- 
tions from Bunyan, to attach to them some prefatory 
remarks. Needless as he feels it himself to be, and 
presumptuous as, to some, the attempt even may 
seem, to say aught in behalf of a work that, faith- 
fully drawn as it is from Bunyan's overflowing stores, 
can require no other recommendation ; yet the sub- 
scriber could not refuse all compliance with the 
wishes of one who has given diligent and hearty 
and appreciating study to the rich and varied re- 
mains of "the immortal Dreamer." 

Many of the Christians of our time, though con- 
versant with the Pilgrim's Progress, and the Holy 
War, are apparently little aware of the glowing 
genius, and fervent piety, and strong sense, and pic- 
turesque imagery, and racy, vigorous English, that 
mark the many other writings of the honored tinker 
of Elstow. These last, if less known than the story 
of the pilgrimage to the Celestial City, and of the 
siege and recovery of the good town of Mansoul, 
yet bear all of them the traces of the same vivid 
fancy, the same earnest heart, and the same robust 

* The late Rev. Dr. Chaplin, the founder and first president of 
Waterville college, in the state of Maine. 

1* 



10 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

and sanctified intellect. To save from comparative 
disuse and consequent unprofitableness — from being 
buried in an undeserved seclusion, if not oblivion, 
many sparkling truths, and pithy sayings, and pun- 
gent rebukes, likely to do great good if they could but 
have, in our busy day, a more general currency over 
the wide mart of the world ; — and to bespeak a new 
circle of influence, and a broader sphere of notoriety 
and usefulness for these overlooked legacies of a good 
and great man of a former age, has been the edi- 
tor's object in the prolonged sifting to which he has 
subjected all Bunyan's writings. Of that patient 
and conscientious study the present selection has 
been the result. It is not hoped, or even wished for 
them, that in the case of any readers able to give 
the requisite leisure, these excerpts should supersede 
the original writings. But these last, in mass, are 
beyond the means and the time which are at the com- 
mand of many Christians, who would yet greatly 
prize the briefer examples of Bunyan's experience 
and Bunyan's teachings that are here presented. 
And even to others of more affluence and leisure, this 
manual may serve to commend the author's works in 
their entireness. Mr. Chaplin himself would most 
anxiously disavow any claim to have exhausted the 
mines from which he brings these gatherings. His 
specimens resemble rather those laces which the good 
Bunyan tagged in Bedford jail — not in themselves 
garments, but merely adjuncts and ornaments of 
larger fabrics. He who would see the entire ward- 
robe of the Dreamer's mind, and the shape and pro- 
portions of the goodly vestures of truth in which he 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 11 

sought to array himself and his readers, must, after 
handling these the laces, turn to the robes, from 
whose edge these have been skilfully detached. 

In the character and history of John Bunyan, the 
great Head of the church seems to have provided a 
lesson of special significance, and singular adapted- 
ness, for the men and the strifes of our own time. 
Born of the people, and in so low a condition, that 
one of Bunyan's modern reviewers, by a strange mis- 
take, construed Bunyan's self-disparaging admissions 
to mean that he was the offspring of gypsies — bred 
to one of the humblest of handicrafts, and having but 
the scantiest advantages as to fortune or culture, he 
yet rose, under the blessings of Grod's word and provi- 
dence and Spirit, to widest usefulness, and to an 
eminence that shows no tokens of decline. Down to 
our own times, the branches of his expanding influ- 
ence seem daily spreading and extending themselves ; 
and the roots of his earthly renown seem daily shoot- 
ing themselves deeper, and taking a firmer hold on the 
judgment of critics and the hearts of the churches. 
When the English houses of Parliament were re- 
cently rebuilt, among the imagery commemorative 
of the nation's literary glories, a place was voted for 
the bust of the Bedford pastor, once so maligned and 
persecuted. Once tolerated by dainty Christians for 
the sake of his piety, while they apologized for what 
they deemed his uncouthness ; he is now, at last, even 
from men of the world, who do not value that piety, 
receiving the due acknowledgment of his rare genius 
and witching style. It is not many years since 
Grilpin, an English clergyman of cultivated taste-— 



12 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

himself a ready and popular writer — issued an edi- 
tion of the Pilgrim's Progress, modified, if not rewrit- 
ten in much of its phraseology, because he deemed 
the original too rude for usefulness. In our own day, 
one of the highest authorities as to the graces and 
powers of our language, the English statesman and 
scholar, T. B. Macaulay, has pronounced upon that 
style, which Gilpin by implication so disparaged, 
the most glowing eulogies. Schools and leisure and 
wealth are useful, but they are not indispensable 
either to felicity or to honor. Bunyan lacked them 
all ; and yet in the absence of them achieved great- 
ness — and what is far better, wide and enduring use- 
fulness. No man, with God's exhaustless Scriptures 
in his hands, and with the rich book of nature and 
providence open in its pictured radiance before his 
eyes, needs to have either a dwindling or an impov- 
erished soul. Of that latter volume r the works of 
God, as of that former, the word of God, Bunyan 
was evidently a delighted and unwearied student. 
His references to birds and insects, flowers and run- 
ning brooks and evening clouds, and forests and moun- 
tains, all show a man whose nature was genially 
awake to the harmony and beauty of the material 
world that lay in order and splendor around him. It 
was, in Bunyan, no mere mimicry caught from books 
and companions — the echo of any fashion of his times. 
He writes of what he had seen with his own eyes ; 
and seems to avoid aiming at aught beyond that. 
Hence to the ocean, which probably he never thus 
saw — and which had he beheld it in its placid vast- 
ness, or in its stormy wrath, he could not well have 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 13 

forgotten — his writings contain, as far as we remem- 
ber, no allusions, in all the varied and exuberant 
imagery which they employ. His books, more than 
those of his more learned contemporaries, Richard 
Baxter, and John Owen, that " mighty armor-bearer 
of the truth," as Bunyan happily calls him, were 
written exclusively from the resources of his own 
personal observation. And, in consequence of this, 
they have the freshness and odors of the outer world 
pervading them — scents and sounds of the highways 
along which, in the trampings of his trade, he had 
plodded, and of the hedges that had shaded him. 
To use the language of the patriarch's benediction, 
they have " the smell of a field which the Lord 
hath blessed." His books are, like Walton's Angler, 
of the open air, and the purling streams. You catch, 
back of the good man's Bible, as he reverently pon- 
ders and commends it, glimpses of rural landscapes, 
and of open skies — God's beautiful world, still lovely, 
even though sin has marred it. Like the Sermon on 
the Mount, Bunyan's page has the traits of field- 
preaching. And it was so, also, in his references to 
the inner world of his own heart. He wrote not 
from the dried specimens of earlier collectors — from 
the shrivelled and rustling leaves of some old herb- 
ary — from the philosophy and metaphysical analysis 
of other men's emotions, so much as from the glow- 
ing records of his own consciousness and experi- 
ence, the fruits of grace and plants of righteous- 
ness, blooming and fragrant in the watered garden 
of his own heart. And this dipping of the pencil into 
his own soul, and into the freshness of nature around 



14 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

him, is doubtless a part of the secret of his perpetual 
originality and unsating freshness. Now, when men 
say repiningly, and in a temper which impeaches 
alike society and providence, that a lowly lot, with 
its necessary privations and its consequent ignorance, 
is a barrier, perpetual and insuperable, against use- 
fulness and happiness and honor, we turn to the 
name and memory of Bunyan as an embodied denial 
of the impeachment, and as carolling forth their cheer- 
ful rebuke of such unmanly and ungodly plaints. 
With God's grace in the heart, and with the gleam- 
ing gates of his heaven brightening the horizon be- 
yond the grave, we may be reformers ; but it cannot 
be in the destructive spirit displayed by some who, 
in the prophet's language, amid darkness on the 
earth, "fret themselves, and curse their King and 
their God, and look upward," Poverty cannot de- 
grade, nor ignorance bedwarf, nor persecution crush, 
nor dungeon enthral the free, glad spirit of a child 
of God, erect in its regenerate strength, and rich in 
its eternal hopes and heritage. And this hopeful 
and elastic temperament colors and perfumes every 
treatise that Bunyan sent out even from the precincts 
of his prison. With a style sinewy as Cobbett's, and 
simple and clear as Swift's ; with his sturdy, peas- 
ant nature showing itself in the roundness and direct- 
ness of his utterance, how little has he of their coarse- 
ness. He was not, on the one hand, like Cobbett, an 
anarchist, or libeller ; but yet, on the other hand, as 
little was he ever a lackey, cringing at the gates of 
Power, or a train-bearer in the retinue of Fashion. 
Still less was he, like Swift, the satirist of his times 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 15 

and of his kind, snarling at his rulers, and turning 
at last to gnaw, in venomous rage, his own heart. 
And yet he who portrayed the character of By-ends, 
and noted the gossipings of Mrs. Bats-eyes, lacked 
neither keenness of vision, nor niceness of hand, to 
have made him most formidable in satire and irony. 
His present station in the literature of Britain 
affords an illustration, familiar and obvious to every 
eye, of God's sovereignty, and of the arrangements 
of Him "who seeth not as man seeth." Had Pepys, 
or any other contemporary courtier that hunted for 
place and pension, or fluttered in levity and sin, in 
the antechambers of the later Stuarts, been asked, 
who of all the writers of the times were likely to go 
down to posterity among the lights of their age, how 
ludicrously erroneous would have been his apportion- 
ments of fame. Pepys might, from the Puritan 
education of his boyhood, have named Owen, Bates, 
and Baxter ; or from the Conformist associations of 
his later years, have selected South, or Patrick, or 
Tillotson, as the religious writers who had surpassed 
all rivalry, or named a Walton or Castell, as having 
taken bonds of fame for the perpetuity of their 
influence. Had he known of Clarendon's prepara- 
tions to become the historian of the Commonwealth 
and Restoration, or of Burnet's habits of preserving 
memoirs of the incidents and characters around him, 
he might have conjectured their probable honors in 
after-times. But in poetry he would have classed 
Dryden the royalist far above Milton the republican 
apologist of regicide; and might, aping the fashions 
of the palace, have preferred to either the author of Hu- 



16 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

dibras together with the lewd playwrights who were 
the delight of a shameless court — hailing the last as 
the most promising candidates for posthumous celeb- 
rity. How little could he have dreamed that among 
these Puritans and Non-conformists, whose unpopular 
cause he had himself deserted, and whom his royal 
masters Charles and James had betrayed, amerced, 
exiled, and incarcerated ; in those conventicles so 
closely watched and so sternly visited, which these 
persecuted confessors yet by stealth maintained ; aye, 
and in those dungeons, whither the informer so often 
from these conventicles dragged them, British free- 
dom had its truest guardians, and British literature 
some of its noblest illustrations. How little thought 
he that Grod had there, in his old and glorious school 
of trial, his " hidden ones," like Bunyan, whose serene 
testimony was yet to shine forth victorious over 
wrong and neglect, and reproach and ridicule, eclips- 
ing so many contemporary celebrities, and giving to 
the homes and the sanctuaries of every land inhabit- 
ed by an English race, one of the names u men will 
not willingly let die." How little could gilded and 
callous favorites of the palace have dreamed that 
their Acts of Uniformity and Five-mile Acts, and the 
like legislation of ecclesiastical proscription, were but 
rearing for the best men of the age, in the prisons 
where they had been immured, a Patmos, serene 
though stern, where the sufferer withdrew from man 
to commune with the King of kings. There the 
prisoned student was receiving for the churches new 
lessons of surpassing beauty and potency; and the 
confessor, pillaged by informers and bullied by judges, 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 17 

and lamented in his own stricken household and des- 
olate home, but only derided by his godless sovereign 
and heartless courtiers, yet often found himself com- 
pensated for every loss, when, like an earlier witness 
for the gospel of the Cross, enwrapped " in the Spirit, 
on the Lord's day." Such were the schools where 
Non-conformist piety received its temper, its edge, 
and its lustre. The story of Bunyan is, we say, one 
of the golden threads binding together into harmony 
and symmetry, what, seen apart, seem but fragmen- 
tary and incoherent influences — the track of a divine 
Providence controlling the fates and reputations of the 
race. It is a Providence disappointing men's judg- 
ments and purposes, exalting the lowly and depress- 
ing the illustrious, rebuking despondency on the one 
hand and on the other curbing presumption, setting 
up one and putting down another. This is done even 
now and even here, as one of the many intimations 
which even time and earth present, of that final and 
universal reparation which is reserved for the general 
resurrection and the last judgment. Then the un- 
forgetting and universal Sovereign will avenge all the 
forgotten of his people, nor leave unpunished one 
among the tallest and mightiest of his enemies. As 
the foreshadowing of this, there is often in this life 
what Milton has called, " a resurrection of charac- 
ter" Seen in Bunyan and others on earth, it will 
be one day accomplished as to all the families of 
mankind. We pronounce too soon upon the appar- 
ent inequalities of fame and recompense around us ; 
while we fail to take in the future as well as the 
present, and attempt to solve the mysteries of time 



18 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

without including in the field of our survey the 
retributions of that eternity which forms the selvage 
and hem of all the webs of earth. And we pronounce 
not only too soon but very superficially upon the 
inequalities of happiness in the lot of those who fear 
and those who scorn G-od ; while we look mainly or 
merely to the outward circumstances of home and 
station and bodily well-being, but take no note of the 
inner and more enduring elements of felicity, sup- 
plied to the sufferer for Christ by the blended powers 
of conscience and of hope — the one of them purified 
and pacified by the blood of the great sacrifice on 
Calvary ; the other of them steadily and cheerfully 
soaring to the glories and rest of the mount Zion 
above. Faithful, in his cage, bearing the gibes and 
flouts of the rabble who thirsted for his blood, was 
one of the happiest men in all Yanity Fair, even ere 
the hour when his spirit mounted the fiery chariot 
that hurried him to his celestial home. 

The style of Bunyan, it may be further said, is 
one of the countless and brilliant testimonials to the 
merit and power of our excellent received version of 
the Bible. Shut out, as Bunyan was, from direct 
contact with much other literature, he was most 
thoroughly conversant with the remains of prophets 
and apostles, embalmed in that venerable work. 
With those scriptures his mind was imbued, satu- 
rated, and tinged, through its whole texture and sub- 
stance. Upon the phraseology and imagery and 
idioms of that book was formed his own vernacular 
style, so racy, glowing, and energetic — long indeed 
underrated and decried, but now beginning to re- 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 19 

ceive its due honors, and winning the praise of critics 
whose judgment and taste few will have the hardi- 
hood to impeach. No immaculate perfection, indeed, 
is claimed for the English version of the Scriptures. 
No perfect version has the world ever seen, or is it 
ever like to see ; but the writings of Bunyan must 
be admitted to stand among the many crowding tro- 
phies of the power of our common Bible to furnish 
the mind with " thoughts that breathe and words 
that burn" — with holiest conceptions and mightiest 
utterances. 

And Bunyan himself, as a theologian on whose 
head no learned academy had laid its hand of patron- 
age, or let fall its anointing dews, but who, whether 
confronting the fanatics of his time or the dis- 
tinguished latitudinarian divines, showed himself so 
powerful a reasoner, so acute and clear and prac- 
tical a thinker, and so mighty in his knowledge of 
the Scriptures — Bunyan himself, in his position and 
merits as a theologian, furnishes a standing monu- 
ment of the power of the divine Spirit to fashion, by 
prayer and the study of the Bible, by affliction and 
by temptation, and by bitter persecutions even, a 
preacher, pastor, and writer, such as no university 
need have disdained to own. To that Spirit Bunyan 
gave zealous, earnest, and continual worship. Re- 
ceiving his light and power from that good Spirit, and 
anxiously directing to that great Agent all the hopes 
and the praises of the flock whom he led, and of the 
readers whom he taught, his writings remain to dif- 
fuse and perpetuate the lesson of his life. Into what- 
ever tribe of the ancient East or of the remote West 



20 PREFATORY NOTICE. 

his Pilgrim has been introduced, the name and story 
of the writer bear, as their great lesson, the testi- 
mony that Grod's Scriptures are the richest of pas- 
tures to the human soul ; and that Grod the Holy 
Ghost, as working with those Scriptures and by those 
Scriptures, is the one Teacher on whose sovereign 
aid all the churches, all the nations, and all the ages 
must depend. For the absence of those influences of 
the divine Spirit no earthly lore can compensate ; 
while the exuberance of those influences may supply, 
as on Pentecost, the lack of all human helpers and 
patrons, and more than replace all universities and 
all libraries. "We love* to dwell on the illustrious 
Dreamer, as one of those characters for whom man 
had done so little and Grod did so much. 

And to Christians who are neither authors nor 
preachers, this life of romantic privacy and illus- 
trious obscurity has its lessons, alike to awe and to 
cheer, of solemn warning and of sustaining hope. 
No scene or station of all the earth that can eye 
paradise, or catch the gleams of the atoning cross, is 
truly ignoble or utterly forlorn. He who promised 
that, in the last days, the inscription which shone on 
the front of the high-priest's mitre, " Holiness unto 
the Lord," should be written also on the very bells 
of the horses, and that " every pot" in Jerusalem, 
and its outlying streets should become holy as the 
consecrated furniture of his own temple and altar, 
can in like manner render the lowliest scenes of 
human art and toil and traffic the schools of truth 
and duty and peace, schools ministering alike to the 
truest happiness and to the most perfect holiness of 



PREFATORY NOTICE. 21 

our race. He who gave, as in Banyan's case he did, 
to the maker or mender of culinary vessels the sacred 
skill to grave the all-holy Name, as one dignifying 
and consecrating them, on all the objects and scenes 
and accompaniments of his humble labors, can, in 
our times and in our various stations, make each 
allowable task of our earthly life to become also 
" Holiness to the Lord ;" and as the Christian's 
body is made a temple of the Holy Ghost, so can he 
render the Christian himself, in all his social rela- 
tions and enterprises, "a priest and a king unto 
God." And the great principle of conciliation amid 
earth's jarring tribes and clashing interests, and of 
true and helpful communion among mankind, is not 
external but internal, not material but spiritual, not 
terrene but celestial ; and is found in the blending by 
this one divine Spirit, of all earth's inhabitants, in a 
common contrition before a common redemption, tend- 
ing as these inhabitants are, under a common* sin and 
doom, to the same inevitable graves ; but all of them 
invited, in the one name of one Christ, to aspire to 
the same heaven of endless and perfect blessedness. 

WILLIAM R. WILLIAMS. 
New York, January, 1851. 



THE 



EICHES OF BUNYAN, 



I. GOD. 



GLORY OF GOD, 



God is the chief good — good so as nothing is but himself. 
He is in himself most happy ; yea, all good and all true 
happiness are only to be found in God, as that which is 
essential to his nature ; nor is there any good or any happi- 
ness in or with any creature or thing but what is commu- 
nicated to it by God. God is the only desirable good ; 
nothing without him is worthy of our hearts. Hight 
thoughts of God are able to ravish the heart ; how much 
more happy is the man that has interest in God. God 
alone is able by himself to put the soul into a more blessed, 
comfortable, and happy condition than can the whole world ; 
yea, and more than if all the created happiness of all the 
angels of heaven did dwell in one man's bosom. I cannot 
tell what to say. I am drowned. The life, the glory, the 
blessedness, the soul-satisfying goodness that is in God, are 
beyond all expression. 

It was this glory of God, the sight and visions of this 
God of glory, that provoked Abraham to leave his country 
and kindred to come after God. The reason why men are 
so careless of and so indifferent about their coming to God, 
is because they have their eyes blinded — because they do 
not perceive his glory. 

God is so blessed a one, that did he not hide himself 
and his glory, the whole world would be ravished with 



24 RICHES OF FITNYAN. 

him ; but he has, I will not say reasons of state, but reasons 
of glory, glorious reasons why he hideth himself from the 
world and appeareth but to particular ones. 



What is heaven without God? But many there be 
who cannot abide God ; no, they like not to go to heaven, 
because God is there. The nature of God lieth cross to 
the lusts of men. A holy God, a glorious holy God, an 
infinitely holy God ; this spoils all. But to the soul that 
is awakened, and that is made to see things as they are, to 
him God is what he is in himself, the blessed, the highest, 
the only eternal good, and he without the enjoyment of 
whom all things would sound but empty in the ears of that 
soul. 

Methinks, when I consider what glory there is at times 
upon the creatures, and that all their glory is the workman- 
ship of God, " Lord," say I, "what is God himself?" He 
may well be called the God of glory, as well as the glorious 
Lord ; for as all glory is from him, so in him is an incon- 
ceivable well-spring of glory, of glory to be communicated 
to them that come bv Christ to him. Wherefore, let the 
glory and love and bliss and eternal happiness that are in 
God, allure thee to come to him by Christ. 



MAJESTY OF GOD. 
What is God's majesty to a sinful man, but a consuming 
fire ? And what is a sinful man in himself, or in his ap- 
proach to God, but as stubble fully dry ? 



What mean the tremblings, the tears, those breakings 
and shakings of heart that attend the people of God, when 
in an eminent manner they receive the pronunciation of 
the forgiveness of sins at his mouth, but that the dread of 
the majesty of God is in their sight mixed therewith ? God 
must appear like himself, speak to the soul like himself; 
nor can the sinner, when under these glorious discoveries of 



MAJESTY OF GOD. 25 

its Lord and Saviour, keep out trie beams of his majesty 
from the eyes of its understanding. 

Alas, there is a company of poor, light, frothy professors 
in the world, that carry it under that which they call the 
presence of God, more like to antics than sober, sensible 
Christians: yea, more like to a fool of a play, than those 
who have the presence of God. They would not carry it 
so in the presence of a king, nor yet of the lord of their 
land, were they but receivers of mercy at his hand. They 
carry it even in their most eminent seasons, as if the sense 
and sight of God, and his blessed grace to their souls in 
Christ, had a tendency in it to make men wanton : but 
indeed it is the most humbling and heart-rending sight in 
the world ; it is fearful. 

Objection. But would you not have us rejoice at the 
sight and sense of the forgiveness of our sins ? 

Answer. Yes ; but yet I would have you, and indeed you 
shall when God shall tell you that your sins are pardoned 
indeed, "rejoice with trembling ;" for then you have solid 
and godly joy : a joyful heart and wet eyes in this, will 
stand very well together ; paid it will be so, more or less. 
For if God shall come to you indeed, and visit you with 
the forgiveness of sins, that visit removeth the guilt, but 
increaseth the sense of thy filth ; and the sense of this, 
that God hath forgiven a filthy sinner, will make thee both 
rejoice and tremble. 0, the blessed confusion which will 
then cover thy face, while thou, even thou, so vile a wretch, 
shalt stand before God to receive at his hand thy pardon, 
and so the first-fruits of thy eternal salvation. "That 
thou mayest remember, and be comforted, and never open 
thy mouth any more, because of thy shame, when I am 
pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the 
Lord God." Jer. 33 : 8, 9 ; Ezek. 16 : 63. 



Since the name of God is that by which his nature is 
expressed, and since he naturally is so glorious and incom- 

Riches of Bunyan '2 



26 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

prehensible, his name must needs be the object of our fear ; 
and we ought always to have a reverent awe of God upon 
our hearts at what time soever we think of or hear his 
name ; but most of all when we ourselves do take his holy 
and fearful name into our mouths, especially in a religious 
manner ; that is, in preaching, praying, or holy conference. 

Make mention then of the name of the Lord at all 
times with great dread of his majesty on your hearts, and 
in great soberness and truth. To do otherwise is to pro- 
fane the name of the Lord, and to take his name in vain. 

Next to God's nature and name, his service, his insti- 
tuted worship, is the most dreadful thing under heaven. 
His name is upon his ordinances, his eye is upon the wor- 
shippers, and his wrath and judgment upon those that 
worship not in his fear. 



His presence is dreadful ; and not only his presence in 
common, but his special, yea, his most comfortable and 
joyous presence. When God comes to bring a soul news 
of mercy and salvation, even that visit, that presence of 
God is fearful. When Jacob went from Beersheba to 
Haran, he met with God in the way by a dream, in the 
which he apprehended a ladder set upon the earth, whose 
top reached to heaven. 'Now in this dream, at the top 
of this ladder, he saw the Lord, and heard him speak unto 
him, not threateningly, not as having his fury come up 
into his face, but in the most sweet and gracious manner, 
saluting him with promise of goodness after promise of 
goodness, to the number of eight or nine. Yet, I say, 
when he awoke, all the grace that discovered itself in this 
heavenly vision to him could not keep him from dread and 
fear of God's majesty: " A_nd Jacob awoke out of his sleep 
and said, ' Surely the Lord was in this place, and I knew 
it not ;' and he was afraid, and said, ' How dreadful is this 
place ; this is none other but the house of God, and this is 
the irate of heaven.' " 



SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD. 27 

At another time, when Jacob had that memorable visit 
from God, in which he gave him power as a prince to pre- 
vail with him; yea, and gave him a name, that by his 
remembering it he might call God's favor the better to his 
mind ; yet, even then and there such dread of the majesty 
of God was upon him, that he went away wondering that 
his life was preserved. Man crumbles to dust at the pres- 
ence of God; yea, though he show himself to us in his 
robes of salvation. Gen. 28 : 10-17 ; 32 : 30. 



JUSTICE OF GOD. 
You may see a few of the sparks of the justice of God 
against sin and sinners, by his casting off angels for sin 
from heaven and hell, by his drowning the old world, by 
his burning of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes. 



God is resolved to have the mastery. God is merci- 
ful, and is come forth into the world by his Son, tendering 
grace unto sinners by the gospel, and would willingly 
make a conquest over them for their good by his mercy. 
Now he being come out, sinners like briars and thorns do 
set themselves against him, and will have none of his 
mercy. Well, but what says God? Saith he, "Then I 
will march on. I will go through them, and burn them 
together. I am resolved to have the mastery one way or 
another ; if they will not bend to me and accept of my 
mercy in the gospel, I will bend them and break them by 
my justice in hell-fire." 



HOLINESS OF GOD. 
The holiness of God makes the angels cover their faces, 
and crumbles Christians, when they behold it, into dust 
and ashes. 



SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD. 
The will of God is the rule of all righteousness, neither 
knoweth he any other way by which he governeth and 



28 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ordereth any of his actions. Whatsoever God doeth, it is 
good because he doeth it ; whether it be to give grace or to 
detain it, whether in choosing or refusing. The considera- 
tion of this made the holy men of old ascribe righteousness 
to their Maker, even when yet they could not see the reason 
of his actions ; they would rather stand amazed and won- 
der at the heights and depths of his unsearchable judg- 
ments, than quarrel at the most strange and obscure of 
them. 



SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD IN CONVERSION. 
Mercy may receive him that we have doomed to hell, 
and justice may take hold on him whom we have judged 
to be bound up in the bundle of life. We, like Joseph, 
are for setting of Manasseh before Ephraim ; but God, like 
Jacob, puts his hands across, and lays his right hand upon 
the worst man's head and his left hand upon the best, 
Gen. 48, to the amazement and wonderment even of the 
best of men. 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD IN CONVERSION. 

Doth no man come to Jesus Christ by the will, wisdom, 
and power of man, but by the gift, promise, and drawing of 
the Father ? Then here is room for Christians to stand 
and wonder at the effectual working of God's providence, 
that he hath made use of as means to bring them to Jesus 
Christ. 

What was the providence that God made use of as a 
means, either more remote or near, to bring thee to Jesus 
Christ ? Was it the removing of thy habitation, the 
change of thy condition, the loss of relations, estate, or the 
like ? Was it the casting of thine eye upon some good 
book, the hearing thy neighbors talk of heavenly things, 
the beholding of God's judgments as executed upon others, 
or thine own deliverance from them, or thy being strangely 
cast under the ministry of some godly man ? take notice 



MERCY OF G-OD. 29 

of such providence or providences. They were sent and 
managed by mighty power to do thee good. God himself 
hath joined himself to this chariot, yea, and so blessed 
it that it failed not to accomplish the thing for which it 
was sent. 



CONDESCENSION OF OOD. 
Notwithstanding there is such a revelation of God in 
his word, in the book of creatures, and in the book of prov- 
idences, yet the scripture says, " Lo, these are parts of his 
ways, but how little a portion is heard of him;" so great 
is God above all that we have read, heard, or seen of him, 
either in the Bible, in heaven, or earth, or sea, or what else 
is to be understood. But now that a poor mortal, a lump 
of sinful flesh, or, as the scripture phrase is, poor dust and 
ashes, should be in the favor, in the heart, and wrapped 
up in the compassions of such a God ! amazing ; 
astonishing consideration ! And yet, " this God is our 
God for ever and ever, and he will be our guide even unto 
death." 



MERCY OF G-OD. 
As God has mercies to bestow, and as he has designed 
to bestow them, so those mercies are no fragments or the 
leavings of others, but mercies that are full and complete 
to do for thee what thou wantest, wouldst have, or canst 
desire. As I may so say, God has his bags that were 
never yet untied, never yet broken up, but laid by him 
through a thousand generations for those that he com- 
mands to hope in his mercy. 



I tell you, sirs, you must not trust your own appre- 
hensions nor judgments of the mercy of God ; you do not 
know how he can cause it to abound : that which seems 
to be short and shrunk up to you, he can draw out and 
cause to abound exceedingly. There is a breadth and 
length and depth and height therein, when God will 



30 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

please to open it, that for its infiniteness can swallow up 
not only all thy sins, but all thy thoughts and imaginations, 
and that also can drown thee at last. " Now unto him 
that is able," as to mercy, " to do exceeding abundantly 
above all that we ask or think, according to the power 
that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by 
Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. 
Amen." 

This therefore is a wonderful thing, and shall be won- 
dered at to all eternity, that the river of mercy, that at 
first did seem to be but ancle deep, should so rise and rise 
that at last it became " waters to swim in, a river that 
could not be passed over." Ezek. 47 : 5. 



G-OD THE JUSTIFIED. 
The first cause of justification before God dependeth 
upon the will of God, who will justify because he will ; 
therefore the meritorious cause must also be of his own 
providing, else his will cannot herein be absolute ; for if 
justification depend upon our personal performances, then 
not upon the will of God. He may not have mercy upon 
whom he will, but on whom man's righteousness will give 
him leave ; but his will, not ours, must rule here, there- 
fore his righteousness and his only. So then, men are 
justified from the curse in the sight of God, while sinners 
in themselves. 



GTLORY OF GOD IN REDEMPTION. 
In redemption by the blood of Christ, God is said to 
abound towards us in all ivisdom. Here we see the high- 
est contradictions reconciled ; here justice kisseth the sin- 
ner; here a man stands just in the sight of God, while 
confounded at his own pollutions ; and here he that hath 
done no good, hath yet a sufficient righteousness, " even 
the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus 
Christ." 



G-LORY IN REDEMPTION, 31 

The justice of God is here more seen than in punishing 
all the damned. 

The mystery of God's ivill is here more seen than in 
hanging the earth upon nothing ; while he condemneth 
Christ though righteous, and justifieth us though sinners, 
while he " maketh him to he sin for us, and us the right- 
eousness of God in him." 

The pozver of God is here more seen than in making 
heaven and earth ; for, for one to hear and get the victory 
over sin when charged hy the justice of an infinite Majesty, 
in so doing he shows the height of the highest power ; for 
where sin hy the law is charged, and that hy God imme- 
diately, there an infinite Majesty opposeth, and that with 
the whole of his justice, holiness, and power ; so then, he 
that is thus charged and engaged for the sin of the world, 
must not only he equal with God, hut show it hy over- 
coming that curse and judgment that hy infinite justice is 
charged upon him for sin. 

"When angels and men had sinned, how did they fall 
and crumhle "before the anger of God ! They had not 
power to withstand the terror, nor could there he worth 
found in their persons or doings to appease displeased jus- 
tice. Here then is power seen : sin is a mighty thing ; it 
crusheth all in pieces, save him whose Spirit is eternal. 
Heh. 9 : 14. Set Christ and his sufferings aside, and you 
neither see the evil of sin nor the displeasure of God 
against it ; you see them not in their utmost. Jesus Christ 
made manifest his eternal power and godhead more hy 
hearing and overcoming our sins, than in making or up- 
holding the whole world. 1 Cor. 1 : 24. 

The love and mercy of God are more seen in and hy 
this doctrine than any other way. Here is love, that God 
sent his Son — his darling — his Son that never offended — 
his Son that was always his delight ! Herein is love, that 
he sent him to save sinners — to save them hy hearing their 
sins, hy hearing their curse, by dying their death, and 



32 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

by carrying their sorrows ! Here is love, in that while we 
were yet without strength, Christ died for the ungodly ' 



G-OD A FATHER. 
how great a task is it for a poor soul that comes, 
sensible of sin and the wrath of God, to say in faith but 
this one word, Father ! I tell you, however hypocrites 
think, yet the Christian that is so indeed finds all the diffi- 
culty in this very thing ; he cannot say God is his Father. 
0, saith he, I dare not call him Father. And hence it is 
that the Spirit must be sent into the hearts of God's people 
for this very thing, to cry Father ; it being too great a 
work for any man to do knowingly and believingly without 
it. When I say knowingly, I mean knowing what it is to 
be a child of God and to be born again ; and when I say 
believingly, I mean for the soul to believe, and that from 
good experience, that the work of grace is wrought in him. 
This is the right calling of God, Father ; and not as many 
do, to say in a babbling way the Lord's prayer by heart. 
No, here is the life of prayer, when in or with the Spirit, 
a man being made sensible of sin and how to come to the 
Lord for mercy, he comes, I say, in the strength of the 
Spirit, and crieth, Father. That one word spoken in faith, 
is better than a thousand prayers in a formal, cold, luke- 
warm way. 



Naturally the name of God is dreadful to us, especially 
when he is discovered to us by those names that declare his 
justice, holiness, power, and glory ; but the word Father is 
a familiar word ; it frighteth not the sinner, but rather in- 
clineth his heart to love and be plaased with the remem- 
brance of him. Hence Christ also, when he would have 
us to pray with godly boldness, put this word Father into 
our mouths, saying, "When ye pray, say, Our Father which 
art in heaven;" concluding thereby that in the familiarity 
which by such a word is intimated, the children of God 



PRESENCE OF GOD. 33 

may take more boldness to pray for and ask great things. 
I myself have often found that when I can say but this 
word, Father, it doth me more good than when I call him 
by any other scripture name. 

It is worth your noting, that to call God by his relative 
title was rare among the saints in Old Testament times ; 
but now in New Testament times, he is called by no name 
so often as this, both by the Lord Jesus Christ himself and 
by the apostles afterwards. Indeed the Lord Jesus was he 
that first made this name common among the saints, and 
that taught them in their discourses, in their prayers, and 
in their writings, so much to use it ; it being more pleasing 
to, and discovering more plainly our interest in God, than 
any other expression. For by this one name we are made 
to understand that all our mercies are the offspring of God, 
and that we also who are called are his children by adoption. 



FAITHFULNESS OF G-OD. 

Faithfulness in him that rules is that which makes 
Zion rejoice, because thereby the promises yield milk and 
honey. For now the faithful God, that keepeth covenant, 
performs to his church that which he told her he would. 
Wherefore our rivers shall run and our brooks yield honey 
and butter. Job 20 : 17. 

Let this teach all God's people to expect, to look, and 
wait for good things from the throne. But 0, methinks 
this throne out of which good comes like a river, who 
but would be a subject to it ? w T ho but would w r orship be- 
fore it ? 



PRESENCE OF GOD. 
God's presence is renewing, transforming, seasoning, 
sanctifying, commanding, sweetening, and lightening to 
the soul. Nothing like it in all the world : his presence 
supplies all wants, heals all maladies, saves from all dan- 
gers ; is life in death, heaven in hell, all in all. 

2=fc 



34 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

G-OD'S REPENTING. 

"And it repented the Lord that he had made man on 
the earth." Repentance in us is a change of the mind, 
but in God a change of his dispensations^ for otherwise he 
repenteth not, neither can he, because it standeth not with 
the perfection of his nature. "In him is no variableness, 
nor shadow of turning." 

Wherefore it is man, not God, that turns. When men 
reject the mercy and ways of God, they cast themselves 
under his wrath and displeasure ; which, because it is 
executed according to the nature of his justice and the 
severity of his law, they miss of the mercy promised before ; 
which that we may know, those shall one day feel that 
shall continue in final impenitency. Therefore God, speak- 
ing to their capacity, tells them he hath repented of doing 
them good. It repented the Lord that he had made Saul 
king ; and yet this repentance was only a change of the 
dispensation which Saul by his wickedness had put him- 
self under ; otherwise the Strength, the Eternity of Israel 
will not lie nor repent. 

The sum is, therefore, that men had now by their wick- 
edness put themselves under the justice and law of God ; 
which justice, by reason of its perfection, could not endure 
they should abide on the earth any longer ; and therefore 
now, as a just reward of their deed, they must be swept 
from the face thereof. 



PROVIDENCE OF aOD. 
We should tremblingly glory and rejoice when we see 
God in the world, though upon those that are the most 
terrible of his dispensations. God the Creator will some- 
times mount himself and ride through the earth, in such 
majesty and glory that he will make all to stand in the 
tent-doors to behold him. how he rode in his chariots of 
salvation, when he went to save his people out of the land 
of Egypt. How he shook the nations. Then his glory 



PROVIDENCE OF GOD. 35 

covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. 
His brightness was as the light : he had horns coming out 
of his hand, and there was the hiding of his power. 

These are glorious things, though shaking dispensations. 
God is worthy to be seen in his dispensations as well as in 
his word, though the nations tremble at his presence. "0 
that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest 
come down," saith the prophet, -"that the mountains might 
flow down at thy presence." 

"We know God, and he is our God, our own God ; of 
whom or of what should we be afraid ? When God roars 
out of Zion, and utters his voice from Jerusalem, when the 
heavens and the earth do shake, the Lord shall be the hope 
of his people and the strength of the children of Israel. 

He that knows the sea, knows the waves will toss them- 
selves ; he that knows a lion, will not much wonder to see 
his paw or to hear the voice of his roaring. And shall we 
that know our God, be stricken with a panic fear when he 
cometh out of his holy place to punish the inhabitants of 
the earth for their iniquity ? W r e should stand like those 
that are next to angels, and tell the blind world who it is 
that is thus mounted upon his steed, and that hath the 
clouds for the dust of his feet, and that thus rideth upon 
the wings of the wind : we should say unto them, "This 
God is our God for ever and ever, and he shall be our 
guide even unto death." 



There are providences of two sorts, seemingly good and 
seemingly bad; and those do usually as Jacob did when 
he blessed the sons of Joseph, cross hands and lay the 
blessing where we would not. There are providences unto 
which we would have the blessings entailed ; but they 
are not. And these are providences that smile upon the 
flesh, such as cast into the lap health, wealth, plenty, 
ease, friends, and abundance of this world's good : because 
these, as Manasseh's name doth signify, have in them an 



36 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

aptness to make us forget our toil, our low estate, and from 
whence w r e were ; but the great blessing is not in them. 

There are providences again, that take away from us 
whatever is desirable to the flesh ; such are sickness, losses, 
crosses, persecution, and affliction; and usually in these, 
though they shock us whenever they come upon us, blessing 
coucheth and is ready to help us. For God, as the name 
of Ephraim signifies, makes us fruitful in the land of afflic- 
tion. He therefore, in blessing his people, lays his hands 
across, guiding them wittingly and laying the chiefest 
blessing on the head of Ephraim, or in that providence 
that sanctifies affliction. Abel — what to the reason of Eve 
was he, in comparison with Cain? Rachel called Benja- 
min the son of her sorrow ; but Jacob knew how to give 
him a better name. Jabez, also, though his mother so 
called him because, as it seems, she -brought him forth 
wdth more than ordinary sorrow, was yet more honorable, 
more godly, than his brethren. 

He that has skill to judge of providences aright, has a 
great ability in him "to comprehend with other saints 
what is the breadth and length and depth and height ;" 
but he that has no skill as to discerning them, is but a 
child in his judgment in those high and mysterious things. 
And hence it is that some shall suck honey out of that at 
which others tremble, for fear it should poison them. I 
have often been made to say, " Sorrow is better than laugh- 
ter, and the house of mourning better than the house of 
mirth." And I have more often seen that the afflicted are 
always the best sort of Christians. There is a man never 
well, never prospering, never but under afflictions, disap- 
pointments, and sorrows; why, this man, if he be a Chris- 
tian, is one of the best of men : " They that go down to the 
sea, that do business in great waters, they see the works of 
the Lord and his wonders in the deep." 

I do not question but that there are some that are alive 
who have been able to say the days of affliction have been 



THE TRINITY. 37 

the best unto them, and who could, if it were lawful, pray 
that they might always he in affliction, if God would hut 
do to them as he did when his hand was last upon them; 
for by them he caused his light to shine. 



Oh how should we, and how would we were but our 
eyes awake, stand and wonder at the preservations, the 
deliverances, the salvations, and benefits with which we 
are surrounded daily, while so many mighty evils seek 
daily to swallow us up as the grave ! 



How many deaths have some been delivered from and 
saved out of before conversion. Some have fallen into 
rivers, some into wells, some into the sea, some into the 
hands of men ; yea, they have been justly arraigned and 
condemned, as the thief upon the cross, but must not die 
before they were converted. They were preserved in 
Christ, and called. 



II. THE TRINITY. 

If in the Godhead there be but one, not three, then the 
Father, the Son, or the Spirit must needs be that one, if 
any one only ; so then the other two are nothing. Again, 
if the reality of a being be neither in the Father, Son, nor 
Spirit, as such, but in the eternal Deity, without consider- 
ation of Father Son and Spirit as three, then neither of 
the three are any thing but notions in us, or manifestations 
of the Godhead, or nominal distinctions, so related by the 
word ; but if so, then when the Father sent the Son, and 
the Father and Son the Spirit, one notion sent another, 
one manifestation sent another. This being granted, it 
unavoidably follows there was no Father to beget a Son, 
no Son to be sent to save us, no Holy Ghost to be sent to 
comfort us and to guide us into all the truth of the Father 



38 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

and Son. At most it amounts to but this : a notion sent a 
notion, a distinction sent a distinction, or one manifesta- 
tion sent another. Of this error these are the conse- 
quences : we are only to believe in notions and distinc- 
tions, when we believe in the Father and the Son ; and so 
shall have no other heaven and glory than notions and 
nominal distinctions can furnish us withal. 

If thou feel thy thoughts begin to wrestle about this 
truth, and to struggle concerning this, one against another, 
take heed of admitting such a question, " How can this 
be?" for here is no room for reason to make it out; here 
is only room to believe it is a truth. You find not one of 
the prophets propounding an argument to prove it, but 
asserting it ; they let it lie for faith to take it up and em- 
brace it. 

" The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of 
God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you 
all. Amen." 



In a word, if you would see it altogether, God's love 
was the cause why Christ was sent to bleed for sinners. 
Jesus Christ's bleeding stops the cries of divine justice. 
God looks upon them as complete in him, and gives them 
to him as by right of purchase. Jesus ever lives to pray 
for them that are thus given unto him. God sends his 
Holy Spirit into them to reveal this to them, sends his 
angels to minister for them, and all this by virtue of an 
everlasting covenant between the Father and the Son. 
" Happy the people that are in such a case." He hath 
made them brethren with Jesus Christ, members of his 
flesh and of his bones, the spouse of this Lord Jesus ; and 
all to show how dearly, really, and constantly he loveth us 
who by the faith of his operation have laid hold upon him. 



The doctrine of the Trinity! that is the substance, that 
is the ground and fundamental of all, for by this doctrine and 



THE TRINITY. 39 

this only the man is made a Christian ; and he that has not 
this doctrine, his profession is not worth a button. 

Yon must know that sometimes the church in the wil- 
derness has but little light, but the diminution of her light 
is not then so much in or as to substantials, as it is as to 
circumstantial things ; she has then the substantials with 
her in her darkest day. 

The doctrine of the Trinity ! you may ask me what 
that is ? I answer, it is that doctrine that showeth us the 
love of God the Father in giving his Son, the love of God 
the Son in giving himself, and the love of the Lord the 
Spirit in his work of regenerating us, that we may be made 
able to lay hold of the love of the Father by his Son, and 
so enjoy eternal life by grace. 



The Father's grace saveth no man without the grace 
of the Son, neither do the Father and the Son save any 
without the grace of the Spirit ; for as the Father loves, 
the Son must die, and the Spirit must sanctify, or no soul 
must be saved. 

Some think that the love of the Father, without the 
blood of the Son, will save them; but they are deceived, 
" for without shedding of blood is no remission." 

Some think that the love of the Father and blood of the 
Son will do, without the holiness of the Spirit of God ; but 
they are deceived also, for " if any man have not the Spirit 
of Christ, he is none of his." 

There is a third sort, that think the holiness of the 
Spirit is sufficient of itself; but they are deceived also, for 
it must be the grace of the Father, the grace of the Son, 
and the grace of the Spirit, jointly, that must save them. 

But yet, as these three do put forth grace jointly and 
truly in the salvation of a sinner, so they put it forth after 
a diverse manner. The Father designs us for heaven, the 
Son redeems from sin and death, and the Spirit makes us 
meet for heaven : not by electing, that is the work of the 



40 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Father ; not by dying, that is the work of the Son ; but by 
his revealing Christ, and applying Christ to our souls, by 
shedding the love of God abroad in our hearts, by sanctify- 
ing our souls, and taking possession of us-as an earnest of 
our possession in heaven. 



III. THE SCRIPTURES. 

The Scriptures carry such a blessed beauty in them to 
that soul that has faith in the things contained in them, 
that they do take the heart and captivate the soul of him 
that believeth them into the love and liking of them, be- 
lieving all things that are written in the law and the 
prophets, and having hope towards God that there shall 
be a resurrection of the dead both of the just and unjust. 

To him that believes the Scriptures aright, the promises 
or threatenings are of more power to comfort or cast down, 
than all the promises or threatenings of all the men in the 
world ; and this was the cause why the martyrs of Jesus 
did so slight both the promises of their adversaries when 
they would have overcome them with proffering the great 
things of this world unto them, and also their threatenings 
when they told them they would rack them, hang them, 
burn them. None of these things could prevail upon them, 
or against them. 



I never had in all my life so great an inlet into the 
word of God as now, [in prison.] Those scriptures that 
I saw nothing in before, were made in this place and state 
to shine upon me. Jesus Christ also was never more real 
and apparent than now. Here I have seen and felt him 
indeed: that word, "We have not preached unto you 
cunningly devised fables," and that, " God raised Christ 
from the dead and gave him glory, that our faith and hope 



THE SCRIPTURES. 41 

might be in God," were blessed words unto me in this 
condition. 

These three or four scriptures also have been great re- 
freshments in this condition to me, John 14 : 1-4 ; 16 : 33 ; 
Heb. 12 : 22-24 ; so that sometimes, when I have been 
in the savor of them, I have been able to laugh at de- 
struction, and to fear neither the horse nor his rider. 1 
have had sweet sights of the forgiveness of my sins in this 
place, and of my being with Jesus in another world. Oh 
the mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, the innumerable 
company of angels, and God the judge of all, and the 
spirits of just men made perfect ; and Jesus has been sweet 
to me in this place : I have seen that here, which I am 
persuaded I shall never while in this w r orid be able to 
express. I have seen a truth in this scripture, " Whom 
having not seen, ye love ; in whom, though now ye see 
him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable 
and full of glory." 



The glass was one of a thousand. It would present a 
man one way with his own features exactly, and turn it 
but another way and it would show one the very face and 
similitude of the Prince of the pilgrims himself. Yes, I 
have talked with them that can tell, and they have said 
that they have seen the very crown of thorns upon his 
head by looking in that glass ; they have therein also seen 
the holes in his hands, in his feet, and in his side. Yea, 
such an excellency is there in that glass, that it will show 
him to one where they have a mind to see him, whether 
living or dead, whether in earth or in heaven, whether in 
a state of humiliation or in his exaltation, whether coming 
to suffer or coming to reign. James 1 : 23-25 ; 1 Cor. 
13 : 12; 2 Cor. 3 : 13. 



Then said Greatheart to Mr. Valiant-for-Truth, "Thou 
hast worthily behaved thyself; let me see thy sword." So 



42 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

he showed it him. When he had taken it into his hand, 
and looked thereon awhile, he said, " Ha, it is a right Je- 
rusalem blade." 

Yaliant. "It is so. Let a man have one of these 
blades, with a hand to wield it and skill to use it, and he 
may venture upon an angel with it. He need not fear its 
holding, if he can but tell how to lay on. Its edge will 
never blunt. It will cut flesh and bones, and soul and 
spirit, and all." 



I saw then in my dream, that they went on in this 
their solitary ground, till they came to a place at which a 
man is apt to lose his way. Now, though when it was 
light their guide could well enough tell how to miss those 
ways that led wrong, yet in the dark he was put to a 
stand ; but he had in his pocket a map of all ways leading 
to or from the celestial city; wherefore he struck a light — 
for he never goes without his tinder-box also — and takes a 
view of his book or map, which bids him be careful in that 
place to turn to the right hand. And had he not been 
careful to look in his map, they had in all probability been 
smothered in the mud ; for just a little before them, and 
that at the end of the cleanest way too, was a pit, none 
knows how deep, full of nothing but mud, there made on 
purpose to destroy the pilgrims in. Then thought I with 
myself, Who that goeth on pilgrimage but would have one 
of these maps about him, that he may look when he is at a 
stand which is the way he must take ? 



If we consider that our next state must be eternal, either 
eternal glory or eternal fire, and that this eternal glory or 
this eternal fire must be our portion according as the word 
of God revealed in the holy Scriptures shall determine, 
who will not but conclude that therefore the words of 
God are they at which we should tremble, and they by 
which we should have our fear of God guided and direct- 



THE SCRIPTURES. 43 

ed ? for by them we are taught how to please him in every 
thing. 



"Noah drank of the wine and was drunken." The 
Holy Ghost, when it hath to do with sin, loves to give it 
its own name ; drunkenness must be drunkenness, murder 
must be murder, and adultery must bear its own name. 
Nay, it is neither the goodness of the man, nor his being 
in favor with God, that will cause him to lessen or mince 
his sin. Noah was drunken ; Lot lay with his daughters ; 
David killed Uriah ; Peter cursed and swore in the garden, 
and also dissembled at Antioch. But this is not recorded 
to the intent that the name of these godly should rot, but 
to show that the best men are nothing without grace, and 
that " he that standeth should not be high-minded, but fear." 
Yea, they are also recorded for the support of the tempted, 
who, when they are fallen, are oft raised up by considering 
the infirmities of others. "Whatsoever things were written 
aforetime were written for our learning, that we through 
patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." 



God's word has two edges; it can cut back-stroke and 
fore-stroke : if it do thee no good, it will do thee hurt ; it 
is the savor of life unto life to those that receive it, but of 
death unto death to them that refuse it. 



I do find in most such a spirit of idolatry concerning 
the learning of this world and wisdom of the flesh, and 
God's glory so much stained and diminished thereby, that 
had I all their aid and assistance at command, I durst not 
make use of aught thereof, and that for fear lest that grace 
and those gifts that the Lord hath given me, should be 
attributed to their wits, rather than to the light of the word 
and Spirit of God. Wherefore I will not take of them 
from a thread to a shoe-latchet, lest they should say, We 
have made Abraham rich. 



44 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

What you find suiting with the scriptures, take, though 
it should not suit with authors ; but that which you find 
against the scriptures, slight, though it should be confirmed 
by multitudes of them. Yea, further, where you find the 
scriptures and your authors agree, yet believe it for the 
sake of scripture's authority. I honor the godly as Chris- 
tians, but I prefer the Bible before them ; and having that 
still with me, I count myself far better furnished than if I 
had, without it, all the libraries of the two universities. 
Besides, I am for drinking water out of my own cistern: 
what G-od makes mine by the evidence of his word and 
Spirit, that I dare make bold w r ith. Wherefore, seeing, 
though I am without their learned lines, yet well furnished 
with the words of God, I mean the Bible, I have contented 
myself with what I have there found ; and having set it 
before your eyes, 

I pray read and take, sir, what you like best j 
And that which you like not, leave for the rest. 



Read, and read again, and do not despair of help to 
understand something of the will and mind of God, though 
you think they are fast locked up from you. Neither 
trouble your heads though you have not commentaries and 
expositions ; pray and read, and read and pray ; for a little 
from God is better than a great deal from men : also what 
is from men is uncertain, and is often lost and tumbled over 
and over by men ; but what is from God is fixed as a nail 
in a sure place. There is nothing that so abides with us, as 
what we receive from God ; and the reason why Christians 
at this day are at such a loss as to some things, is because 
they are content with what comes from men's mouths, with- 
out searching and kneeling before God to know of him the 
truth of things. Things that we receive at God's hand come 
to us as things from the minting-house, though old in them- 
selves, yet new to us. Old truths are always new to us, if 
they come to us with the smell of heaven upon them. 



VALUE OF THE SOUL. 45 

IV. MAN. 

THE IMAGE OF G-OD. 

Man is God's image, and to curse wickedly the image 
of God, is to curse God himself. Suppose that a man 
should say with his mouth, I wish that the king's picture 
were burned ; would not this man's so saying render him 
as an enemy to the person of the king ? Even so it is with 
them that by cursing wish evil to their neighbors or them- 
selves ; they contemn the image of God himself. 



This world, as it dropped from the fingers of God, was 
far more glorious than it is now. 



VALUE OF THE SOUL. 

The soul is a thing, though of most worth, least minded 
by most. The souls of most lie waste, while all other things 
are inclosed. 

Soul-concerns are concerns of the highest nature, and 
concerns that arise from thoughts most deep and ponder- 
ous. He never yet knew what belonged to great and deep 
thoughts, that is a stranger to soul-concerns. 



The soul is capable of having to do with invisibles, 
with angels, good or bad, yea, with the highest and supreme 
Being, even the holy God of heaven. I told you before that 
God sought the soul of man to have it for his companion ; 
and now I tell you that the soul is capable of communion 
with him, when the darkness that sin hath spread over 
its face is removed. The soul is an intelligent power, 
and it can be made to know and understand depths and 
heights and lengths and breadths, in those high, sublime, 
and spiritual mysteries that only God can reveal and teach ; 
yea, it is capable of diving unutterably into them. And 
herein is God, the God of glory, much delighted — that he 



46 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

hath made for himself a creature that is capable of hearing, 
of knowing and of understanding his mind, when opened 
and revealed to it. 



The greatness of the soul is manifest by the greatness 
of the price that Christ paid for it to make it an heir of 
glory, and that was his precious blood. We do use to 
esteem things according to the price that is given for them, 
especially when we are convinced that the purchase has 
not been made by the estimation of a fool. Now the soul 
is purchased by a price, that the Son, the wisdom of God, 
thought fit to pay for the redemption thereof; what a thing 
then is the soul ! 

Suppose a prince, or some great man, should on a sud- 
den descend from his throne or chair of state, to take up, 
that he might put in his bosom, something that he had 
espied lying trampled under the feet of those that stand 
by ; would you think that he would do this for an old 
horseshoe, or for so trivial a thing as a pin or a point? 
Nay, would you not even of yourselves conclude that that 
thing for which the prince, so great a man, should make 
such a stoop, must needs be a thing of very great worth ? 
Why, this is the case of Christ and the soul. Christ is 
the prince, his throne is in heaven, and as he sat there he 
espied the souls of sinners trampled under the foot of the 
law and death for sin. Now what doth he, but comes 
down from his throne, stoops down to the earth, and there, 
since he could not have the trodden-down souls without 
price, he lays down his life and blood for them. 



ADAM'S TRANSGRESSION. 
In a word, Adam led mankind out of their paradise; 
that is one woe : and put out their eyes, that is another ; 
and left them to the leading of the devil. sad ! Canst 
thou hear this, and not have thy ears to tingle and burn 
on thy head? Canst thou read this and not feel it, and 



LOVE OF SIN. 47 

not feel thy conscience begin to throb ? If so, surely it is 
because thou art either possessed with the devil, or beside 
thyself. 



0, this was the treasure that Adam left to his posterity, 
it was a broken covenant, insomuch that death reigned over 
all his children, and doth still to this day, as they come 
from him — both natural and eternal death. Rom. 5. 



DEPRAVITY OF NATURE. 
Let a man be as devout as is possible for the law and 
the holiness of the law. Yet if the principles from which 
he acts be but the habit of soul, the purity, as he feigns, of 
his own nature — principles of natural reason, or the dic- 
tates of human nature ; all this is nothing else but the old 
gentleman in his holiday clothes: the old heart, the old 
spirit, the spirit of the man, not the spirit of Christ, is here. 



LOVE OF SIN. 

Sin has been delightfully admitted to an entertainment 
by all the powers of the soul. The soul hath chosen it 
rather than God; and also, at God's command, refuses to 
let it go. 

If there be at any time, as indeed there is, a warrant 
issued out from the mouth of God to apprehend, to condemn 
and mortify sin, why then the souls of sinners do presently 
make these shifts for the saving of sin from things that by 
the word men are commanded to do unto it : 

1 . They will, if possible, hide it, and not suffer it to be 
discovered. 

2. As the soul will hide it, so it will excuse it, and 
plead that this and that piece of wickedness is no such evil 
thing, men need not be so nice. 

3. As the soul will do this, so to save sin it will cover 
it with names of virtue, either moral or civil. 

4. If convictions and discovery of sin be so strong and 



48 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

so plain that the soul cannot deny but that it is sin, and 
that God is offended therewith, then it will give flattering 
promises to God that it will indeed put it away ; but yet 
it will prefix a time that shall be long first, saying, Yet a 
little sleep, yet a little slumber, yet a little folding of sin 
in my arms, till I am older, till I am richer, till I have had 
more of the sweetness and the delights of sin. 

5. If God yet pursues, and will see whether this promise 
of putting sin out of doors shall be fulfilled by the soul, 
why then it will be partial in God's law ; it will put away 
some, and keep some ; put away the grossest, and keep the 
finest ; put away those that can best be spared, and keep 
the most profitable for a help at a pinch. 

6. Yea, if all sin must be abandoned, or the soul shall 
have no rest, why then the soul and sin will part — with 
such a parting as it is — even as Phaltiel parted with 
David's wife, with an ill-will and a sorrowful mind ; or as 
Orpah left her mother, with a kiss. 2 Sam. 3:16; Ruth 
1 :14. 

7. And if at any time they can or shall meet with each 
other again, and nobody never the wiser, what courting 
will be between sin and the soul. 

By all these, and many more things that might be in- 
stanced, it is manifest that sin has a friendly entertainment 
by the soul, and that therefore the soul is guilty of damna- 
tion ; for what do all these things argue, but that God, his 
word, his ways and graces, are out of favor with the soul, 
and that sin and Satan are its only pleasant companions ? 



SIN. 
Sin so sets itself against the nature of God that, if 
possible, it would annihilate and turn him into nothing, it 
being in its nature point-blank against him. 



What a thing is sin ; what a devil and master of devils 
is it, thai it should, where it takes hold, so hang that noth- 



SIN. 49 

ing can unclutch its hold, but the mercy of God and the 
heart-blood of his dear Son. 



'No sin is little in itself; because it is a contradiction 
of the nature and majesty of God. 



0, sin, what art thou ! What hast thou done ! and 
what still wilt thou further do, if mercy and blood and 
grace do not prevent thee ! 



Sin is the living worm, the lasting fire ; 
Hell soon would lose its heat, could sin expire. 
Better sinless in hell, than to be where 
Heaven is, and to be found a sinner there. 
One sinless with infernals might do well, 
But sin would make of heaven a very hell. 
Look to thyself then, keep it out of door. 
Lest it get in and never leave thee more. 

No match has sin but God in all the world ; 
Men, angels, has it from their station hurled, 
Holds them in chains as captives, in despite 
Of all that here below is called might. 
Release, help, freedom from it none can give, 
But even He by whom we breathe and live. 
Watch therefor e, keep this giant out of door, 
Lest, if once in, thou get him out no more. 

Fools make a mock at sin, will not believe 
It carries such a dagger in its sleeve. 
How can it be, say they, that such a thing, 
So full of sweetness, e'er should wear a sting? 
They know not that it is the very spell 
Of sin, to make men laugh themselves to hell. 
Look to thyself, then, deal with sin no more, 
Lest He that saves, against thee shut the door. 



There are sins against light, sins against knowledge, 
sins against love, sins against learning, sins against threat- 
enings, sins against promises and vows and resolutions, sins 
against experience, sins against examples of anger, and 

Riches of Bunyan. O 



50 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sins that have great and high and strange aggravations 
attending them ; the which we are ignorant of, though not 
altogether, yet in too great a measure. 



Sins go not alone, hut follow one another as do the links 
of a chain. 



A presumptuous sin is such a one as is committed in 
the face of the command, in a desperate venturing to run 
the hazard, or in a presuming upon the mercy of God 
through Christ, to he saved notwithstanding : this is a 
leading sin to that which is unpardonahle, and will be 
found with such professors as do hanker after iniquity. 



One leak will sink a ship ; and one sin will destroy a 
sinner. 



He that lives in sin and hopes for happiness hereafter, 
is like him that soweth cockle and thinks to fill his barn 
with wheat and barlev- 



Crush sin in the conception, lest it bring forth death in 
thy soul. 



Some men's hearts are narrow upwards and wide down- 
wards — narrow as to God, but wide for the world. 



PRIDE. 

Pride is the ringleader of the seven abominations that 
the wise man nameth. Prov. 6:16, 17. 



Apparel is the fruit of sin ; wherefore, let such as pride 
themselves therein remember, that they cover one shame 
with another. But let them that are truly godly have 
their apparel modest and sober, and with such shainc- 
faccdness put them on ; remembering always, that the first 



DRUNKENNESS. 51 

cause of our covering our nakedness was the sin and shame 
of our first parents. 

ENVY. 
Mr. Badman's envy was so rank and strong, that if it 
at any time turned its head against a man, it would hardly 
ever be pulled in again. He would watch over that man 
to do him mischief, as the cat watches over the mouse to 
destroy it ; yea, he would wait seven years hut he would 
have an opportunity to hurt him, and when he had it, 
he would make him feel the weight of his envy. This 
envy is the very father and mother of a great many hid 
eous paid prodigious wickednesses. It both begets them, 
and also nourishes them up till they come to their cursec:. 
maturity in the bosom of him that entertains them. 



DRUNKENNESS. 

Drunkenness is so beastly a sin, a sin so much against 
nature, that I wonder that any who have but the appear- 
ance of men can give up themselves to so beastly, yea, 
worse than beastly a thing. 

Many that have begun the world with plenty, have 
gone out of it in rags, through drunkenness. Yea, many 
children that have been born to good estates, have yet been 
brought to a flail and a rake through this beastly sin of 
their parents. 

Yea, it so stupefies and besots the soul, that a man who 
is far gone in drunkenness is hardly ever recovered to God. 
Tell me, when did you see an old drunkard converted ? 
No, no ; such a one will sleep till he dies, though he sleep 
on the top of a mast ; so that if a man have any respect 
either to credit, health, life, or salvation, he will not be a 
drunken man. 



" And Noah was uncovered." Behold ye now, that a 
little of the fruit of the vine lays gravity, grey hairs, and 



52 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

a man that for hundreds of years was a lover of faith, 
holiness, goodness, sobriety, and all righteousness, shame- 
lessly as the object to the eye of the wicked. 



"And Noah lived after the flood three hundred and 
fifty years." He lived, therefore, to see Abraham fifty- 
and-eight years old ; he lived also to see the foundation of 
Babel laid, nay, the top-stone thereof; and also the con- 
fusion of tongues ; he lived to see of the fruit of his loins, 
mighty kings and princes. But in all this time he lived not 
to do one work that the Holy G-host thought worthy to 
record, for the savor of his name or the edification and 
benefit of his church, save only, that he died at "nine 
hundred and fifty years :" so great a breach did this drunk- 
enness make upon his spirit. 



SINNERS. 
Usually in wicked families, some one or two are more 
arch for wickedness than are any other that are there. 
Now such are Satan's conduit-pipes; for by them he con- 
veys of the spawn of hell, through their being crafty in 
wickedness, into the ears and souls of their companions. 



"And she bare Cain:" the first sprout of a disobedient 
couple, a man in shape, but a devil in disposition. 



The sinner, when his conscience is fallen asleep and 
grown hard, will lie like the smith's dog at the foot of the 
anvil, though the fire-sparks fly in his face. 



Peace in a sinful course is one of the greatest of 
curses. 



There is a wicked man that goes blinded, and a wicked 
man that goes with his eyes open, to hell ; there is a wicked 
man that cannot see, and a wicked man that will not see, 



SINFUL EASE. 53 

the danger he is in; but hell-fire will open the eyes of 
both. 



The soul with some is the game, their lusts are the 
dogs, and they themselves are the huntsmen ; and never 
do they more halloo and lure and laugh and sirig, than 
when they have delivered up their soul* their darling, 
to these dogs. 



I may safely say, that the most of men who are con- 
cerned in a trade, will be more vigilant in dealing with a 
twelvepenny customer, than they will be with Christ when 
he comes to make unto them by the gospel a tender of the 
incomparable grace of God. 



SINFUL EASE. 

'Tis true there is no man more at ease in his mind — 
with such ease as it is — than the man that hath not closed 
with the Lord Jesus, but is shut up in unbelief. Oh, but 
that is the man that stands convicted before God, and that 
is bound over to the great assize ! that is the man whose 
sins are still his own, and upon whom the wrath of God 
abideth ; for the ease and peace of such, though it keep 
them far from fear, is but like to that of the secure thief 
that is ignorant that the constable standeth at the door : 
the first sight of an officer makes his peace to give up the 
ghost. Oh, how many thousands that can now glory that 
they were never troubled for sin against God — I say, how 
many be there that God will trouble worse than he trou- 
bled cursed Achan, because their peace, though false and of 
the devil, was rather chosen by them than peace by Jesus 
Christ, than peace with God by the blood of his cross. 

Awake, careless sinners, awake, and arise from the 
dead, and Christ shall give you light. Content not your- 
selves either with sin or righteousness, if you be destitute 
of Jesus Christ; but cry, cry, Oh cry to God for light to 



54 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

see your condition "by. Light is in the word of God, for 
therein is the righteousness of God revealed ; cry there- 
fore for light to see this righteousness by : it is a righteous- 
ness of Christ's finishing, of God's accepting, and that which 
alone can save the soul from the stroke of eternal justice. 



THE CHILD AND THE BIRD. 

" My little bird, how canst thou sit 

And sing amidst so many thorns ? 
Let me but hold upon thee get. 

My love with honor thee adorns. 
Thou art at present little worth, 

.Five farthings none will give for thee ; 
But prithee, little bird, come forth, 

Thou of more value art to me. 

" 'Tis true it is sunshine to-day, 

To-morrow birds will have a storm; 
My pretty one, come thou away, 

My bosom then shall keep thee warm. 
Thou subject art to cold o' nights, 

When darkness is thy covering; 
At day thy danger 's great by kites : 

How canst thou then sit there and shig? 

" Thy food is scarce and scanty too, 

'Tis worms and trash that thou dost eat : 
Thy present state I pity do, 

Come, I'll provide thee better meat. 
I'll feed thee with white bread and milk, 

And sugar-plums, if them thou crave ; 
I'll cover thee with finest silk, 

That from the cold I may thee save. 

61 My father's palace shall be thine, 

Yea, in it thou shalt sit and sing 5 
My little bird, if thou' It be mine, 

The whole year round shall be thy spring. 
I'll teach thee all the notes at court, 

Unthought-of music thou, shalt play, 
And all that thither do resort 

Shall praise thee for it every day. 



THE SINNER WARNED. 55 

" I'll keep thee safe from cat and cur, 

No manner o' harm shall come to thee 5 
Yea, I will be thy succorer, 

My bosom shall thy cabin be. :r 
But lo, behold, the bird is gone ! 

These charmings would not make her yield: 
The child *s left at the bush alone, 

The bird flies yonder o'er the field. 

The child of Christ an emblem is : 

The bud to sinners I compare : 
The thorns are like those sins of theirs, 

Which do surround them everywhere. 
Her songs, her food, her sunshine day, 

Are emblems of those foolish toys 
Which to destruction lead the way — 

The fruit of worldly, empty joys. 

The arguments this child doth choose 

To draw to him a bird thus wild, 
Shows Christ familiar speech doth use, 

To make the sinner reconciled. 
The bird, in that she takes her wing 

To speed her from him after all, 
Shows us vain man loves any thing 

Much better than the heavenly call. 



THE SINNER "WARNED. 
Thy bed, when thou liest down in it, preacheth to thee 
thy grave ; thy sleep, thy death ; and thy rising in the 
morning, thy resurrection to judgment. 



Wouldst thou know, sinner, what thou art ? look up to 
the cross, and behold a weeping, bleeding, dying Jesus ; 
nothing could do but that, nothing could save thee but his 
blood : angels could not, saints could not, God could not, 
because he could not lie, because he could not deny him- 
self. 

"What a thing is sin, that it should sink all that bear 
its burden ; yea, it sunk the Son of God himself into death 



56 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

and the grave, and had also sunk him into hell-fire for 
ever, had he not been the Son of God, had he not been 
able to take it on his back and bear it away. 

this Lamb of God ! Sinners were going to hell ; 
Christ was the delight of his Father, and had a whole 
heaven to himself; but that did not content him, heaven 
could not hold him, he must come into the world to save 
sinners. 

Aye, and had he not come thy sins had sunk thee, thy 
sins had provoked the wrath of God against thee to thy 
destruction for ever. There is no man but is a sinner ; 
there is no sin but would damn an angel, should God lay 
it to his charge. 

Sinner, the doctrine of Christ crucified cries therefore 
aloud unto thee, that sin has made thy condition dreadful. 
See yourselves, your sins, and consequently the condition 
that your souls are in by the death and blood of Christ. 
Christ's death gives us the most clear discovery of the 
dreadful nature of our sins. 

1 say again, if sin be so dreadful a thing as to break 
the heart of the Son of God, how shall a poor, wretched, 
impenitent, damned sinner wrestle with the wrath of 
God? 

Awake, sinners; you are lost, you are undone, you 
perish, you are damned ; hell-fire is your portion for ever, if 
you abide in your sins, and be found without a Saviour in 
the dreadful day of judgment. 



Sinner, doth not all this discourse make thy heart 
twitter after the mercy that is with God, and after the 
way that is made by this plenteous redemption thereto ? 
Methinks it should ; yea, thou couldest not do otherwise, 
didst thou but see thy condition. Look behind thee, take a 
view of the path thou hast trodden these many years. 
Dost thou think that the way that thou art in will lead 
thee to the strait gate, sinner ? Ponder the path of thy 



THE SINNER WARNED. 57 

feet with the greatest seriousness ; thy life lies upon it ; 
what thinkest thou ? But make no answer till in the 
night, till thou art in the night-watches ; commune with 
thine own heart upon thy bed, and there say what thou 
thinkest of whither thou art going. 

Oh that thou wert serious ! Is not it a thing to be 
lamented, that madness and folly should he in thy heart 
while thou livest, and after that to go to the dead ; when 
so much life stands before thee, and light to see the way 
to it ? Surely men void of grace and possessed of carnal 
minds must either think that sin is nothing, that hell is 
easy, and that eternity is short ; or else that whatever God 
has said about the punishing of sinners, he will never do 
as he has said ; or that there is no sin, no God, no heaven, 
no hell, and so no good or bad hereafter ; or else they could 
not live as they do. But perhaps thou presumest upon it, 
and sayest, I shall have peace, though I live so sinful a 
life. Sinner, if this wicked thought be in thy heart, tell me 
again, dost thou thus think in earnest ? Canst thou imag- 
ine thou shalt at the day of account outface God, or make 
him believe thou wast what thou wast not ; or that when 
the gate is shut up in wrath, he will at thy pleasure and to 
the reversing of his own counsel, open it again to thee ? 
Why shall thy deceived heart turn thee aside, that thou 
canst not deliver thy soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my 
right hand ? 



Friend, because it is a dangerous thing to be walking 
towards the place of darkness and anguish, and because 
notwithstanding, it is the journey that most of the poor 
souls in the world are taking, I have thought it my duty 
for preventing thee, to tell thee what sad success those 
souls have had that have persevered therein. "Why, friend, 
it may be — nay, twenty to one, thou hast had thy back 
to heaven and thy face towards hell ever since thou didst 
come into the world. Why, I beseech thee, put a little 

3* 



58 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

stop to thy earnest race, and take a view of what enter- 
tainment thou art like to have, if thou do in deed and in 
truth persist in thy course. " Thy ways lead down to 
death, and thy steps to hell." It may be, indeed, the path 
is pleasant to the flesh, but the end thereof will be bitter 
to thy soul. Hark ! dost thou not hear the bitter cries of 
them that are newly gone before thee, saying, " Let him 
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue ; for I 
am tormented in this flame !" Dost thou not hear them say, 
" Send one from the dead, to prevent my father, my brother, 
my father's house, from coming to this place of torment !" 
Shall not these mournful groans pierce thy flinty heart ? 
Wilt thou stop thine ears and shut thine eyes ? And wilt 
thou not regard? Take warning, and stop thy journey 
before it be too late. Wilt thou be like the silly fly, that 
is not quiet unless she be either entangled in the spider's 
web or burnt in the candle ? sinner, sinner, there are 
better things than hell to be had ! There is heaven, there 
is God, there is Christ, there is communion with an innu- 
merable assembly of saints and angels ! 



The poor, carnal, ignorant world miss of heaven, even 
because they- love their sins and cannot part with them. 
John 3 : 9, 20. 

The poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they 
stop their ears against convictions, and refuse to come when 
God calls. Prov. 1 : 24-29. 

The poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because the 
god of this world hath blinded their eyes, that they can 
neither see the evil and damnable state they are in at 
present, nor the way to get out of it; neither do they see 
the beauty of Jesus Christ, nor how willing he is to save 
poor sinners. 2 Cor. 4 : 2, 3. 

The poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they 
defer coming to Christ until the time of God's patience 
and grace is over. Some indeed are resolved never to 



THE SINNER WARNED. 59 

come; but some again say, "We will come hereafter;" 
and so it comes to pass, that because God called and they 
did not hear, so " they shall cry and I will not hear," saith 
the Lord. Zech. 7 : 11-13. 

The poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they 
have false apprehensions of God's mercy. They say in 
their hearts, "We shall have peace, though we walk in 
the imagination of our heart." Deut. 29 : 19-21. 

The poor ignorant world miss of heaven, because they 
make light of the gospel that offers mercy to them freely, 
and because they lean upon their own good meanings and 
thinkings and doings. Matt. 22 : 1-5 ; Rom. 9 : 30, 31. 

The poor carnal world miss of heaven, because by un- 
belief, which reigns in them, they are kept for ever from 
being clothed with Christ's righteousness, and from wash- 
ing in his blood, without which there is no remission of 
sin nor justification. 



Blush, sinner, blush ! Ah, that thou hadst grace to 
blush. 



My first word shall be to the openly profane. Poor 
sinner, thou readest that many that expect heaven will 
go without heaven. What sayest thou to this, poor sinner ? 
If judgment begins at the house of God, what will be the 
end of them that obey not the gospel of God ? This is 
Peter's question : canst thou answer it, sinner ? Yea, I say 
again, if judgment must begin at them, will it not make 
thee think, What shall become of me ? And I add, when 
thou shaft see the stars of heaven tumble down to he]l, 
canst thou think that such a muck-heap of sin as thou art 
shall be lifted up to heaven ? Peter asks thee another 
question : " If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall 
the ungodly and the sinner appear ?" Canst thou answer 
this question, sinner? Stand among the righteous thou 
mayst not : " The ungodly shall not stand in the judg- 



60 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ment." Stand among the wicked thou then wilt not dare 
to do : where wilt thou appear, sinner ? To stand among 
the hypocrites will avail thee nothing : " The hypocrite 
shall not come before him," that is, with acceptance, "but 
shall perish." 

Because it concerns thee much, let me over with it 
again. "When thou shalt see less sinners than thou art 
bound up by angels in bundles to burn them, where wilt 
thou appear, sinner ? Thou mayst wish thyself another 
man, but that will not help thee, sinner. Thou mayst 
wish, "Would I had been converted in time:" but that 
will not help thee neither. And if, like the wife of Jero- 
boam, thou shouldst feign thyself to be another, the 
prophet, the Lord Jesus, would soon find thee out. What 
wilt thou do, poor sinner ? Heavy tidings, heavy tidings 
will attend thee, except thou repent, poor sinner ! 



Sluggard, art thou asleep still? art thou resolved to 
sleep the sleep of death ? Will neither tidings from 
heaven nor hell awake thee ? Wilt thou say still, "Yet a 
little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the arms to 
sleep ?" 

that I was one that was skilful in lamentation, and 
had but a yearning heart towards thee, how would I pity 
thee ; how would I bemoan thee ! Poor soul, lost soul, dying 
soul, what a hard heart have I that I cannot mourn for 
thee ! If thou shouldst lose but a limb, a child, or a friend, 
it would not be so much ; but, poor man, it is thy soul : if 
it was to lie in hell but for a day, but for a year, nay, ten 
thousand years, it would in comparison be nothing ; but 
it is' for ever ! this cutting ever ! 



Sinner, awake ; yea, I say unto thee, awake ! Sin lieth 
at thy door, and God's axe lieth at thy root, and hell-fire is 
right underneath thee. I say again, awake. Every tree 



CONSCIENCE. 61 

that bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down and cast 
into the fire. 

Poor sinner, awake : Eternity is coming, and his Son ; 
they are both coming to judge the world : awake ; art yet 
asleep, poor sinner ? let me set the trumpet to thine ear 
once again. The heavens will be shortly on a burning 
flame ; the earth and the works thereof shall be burned 
up, and then wicked men shall go into perdition : dost thou 
hear this, sinner ? 

Hark again : the sweet morsels of sin will then be fled 
and gone, and the bitter, burning fruits of them only left. 
What sayst thou now, sinner ? canst thou drink hell-fire ? 
will the wrath of God be a pleasant dish to thy taste ? 
This must be thine every day's meat and drink in hell, 
sinner. 

I will yet propound to thee God's ponderous question, 
and then for this time leave thee : " Can thine heart endure, 
or can thy hands be strong in the day that I shall deal 
with thee, saith the Lord?" What sayst thou ? Wilt thou 
answer this question now ; or wilt thou take time to do it ; 
or wilt thou be desperate and venture all ? And let me 
put this text in thine ear to keep it open, and so the Lord 
have mercy upon thee : " Upon the wicked shall the Lord 
rain snares, fire, and brimstone, and a horrible tempest ; 
this shall be the portion of their cup." Repent, sinners. 



CONSCIENCE. 

Conscience hath its place in the soul, where it is as a 
judge to discern of things good or bad, and judge them 
accordingly. Romans 2 : 14. This conscience is that in 
which is the law of nature, 1 Cor. 11 : 14, which is able to 
teach the Gentiles that sin against the law is sin against 
God. 

Now this conscience, this nature itself, because it can 
control and chide them for sin who give ear unto it — must 
it therefore be idolized and made a god of? wonder- 



62 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ful ! that men should make a God and a Christ of their 
consciences because they can convince of sin. 

Thou sayest, He that convinces of sins against the law, 
leads up to the fulfilling of the law. Friend, thy con- 
science convinces of sins against the law : follow thy con- 
science, and it may lead thee under the curse of the law, 
through its weakness ; hut it can never deliver thee from 
the curse of the law by its power. For if righteousness 
come by obedience to the law, or by thy conscience either, 
then Christ is dead in vain. " G-al. 2 : 21. 



A G-OOD CONSCIENCE. 
This must needs be a blessed help in distress, for a man 
to have a good conscience when affliction hath taken hold 
on him ; for a man then, in his looking behind and before, 
to return with peace to his own soul, that man must needs 
find honey in this lion. 



This is the way to maintain always the answer, the 
echoing answer of a good conscience in thy own soul. 
Godliness is of great use this way ; for the man that hath 
a good conscience to God-ward, hath a continual feast in 
his own soul : while others say there is casting down, he 
shall say there is lifting up ; for God shall save the humble 
person. Some indeed, in the midst of their profession, are 
reproached, smitten, and condemned of their own heart, 
their conscience still biting and stinging them because of 
the uncleanness of their hands ; and they cannot lift up 
their face un,to God, they have not the answer of a good 
conscience towards him, but must walk as persons false to 
their God and as traitors to their own eternal welfare. But 
the godly upright man shall have the light shine upon his 
ways, and he shall take his steps in butter and honey. The 
work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of 
righteousness, quietness, and assurance for ever. " If our 
heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and 



A G-UILTY CONSCIENCE. 63 

knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, 
then have we confidence towards God." 



A TENDER CONSCIENCE. 
A tender conscience is to some people like Solomon's 
brawling woman, a burthen to those that have it ; but let 
it be to thee like those that invited David to go up to "the 
house of the Lord. 



A G-UILTY CONSCIENCE. 
"And Adam and his wife hid themselves from the pres- 
ence of the Lord God." These latter words are spoken, 
not to persuade us that men can hide themselves from God, 
but that Adam and those that are his by nature will seek 
to do it, because they do not know him aright. These 
words therefore further show us what a bitter thing sin is 
to the soul ; it is only for hiding-work, sometimes under its 
fig-leaves, sometimes among the trees of the garden. 
what a shaking, starting, timorous evil conscience is a sin- 
ful, guilty conscience : especially when it is but a little 
awakened, it could run its head into every hole, first by one 
fancy, then by another ; for the power and goodness of a 
man's own righteousness cannot withstand or answer the 
demands of the justice of God and his holy law. 



There is yet another witness for the condemning trans- 
gressors of these laws, and that is conscience : " Their con- 
sciences also bearing witness," says the apostle. Conscience 
is a thousand witnesses. Conscience ! it will cry amen to 
every word that the great God doth speak against thee. 
Conscience is a terrible accuser; it will hold pace with 
the witness of God, as to the truth of evidence, to a hair's 
breadth. The witness of conscience, it is of great author- 
ity ; it commands guilt and fastens it on every soul which 
it accuses. Conscience will thunder and lighten at the 
day of judgment ; even the consciences of the most pagan 



64 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sinners in the world will have sufficient wherewith to ac- 
cuse, to condemn, and to make paleness appear in their 
faces and breaking in their loins, by reason of the force of 
its conviction. the mire and dirt that a guilty conscience, 
when it is forced to speak, will cast up and throw out before 
the judgment-seat. It must out ; none can speak peace nor 
health to that man upon whom God has let loose his own 
conscience. Cain will now cry, " My punishment is greater 
than I can bear ;" Judas will hang himself; and both Bel- 
shazzar and Felix will feel the joints of their loins to be 
loosened, and their knees to smite one against another, 
when conscience stirreth. 

When conscience is once thoroughly awakened, as it 
shall be before the judgment-seat, God will need say no 
more to the sinner than Solomon said to filthy Shimei, 
"Thou knowest all the wickedness that thy heart is privy 
to." As who should say, " Thy conscience knows, and can 
well inform thee of all the evil and sin that thou art guilty 
of." To all which it answers even as face answers a face 
in a glass ; or as an echo answers the man that speaks : 
as fast, I say, as God chargeth, conscience will cry out, 
" Guilty, guilty, Lord ; guilty of all, of every whit ; I 
remember clearly all the crimes thou layest before me," 
Thus will conscience be a witness against the soul in the 
day of God. 



Y. THE LAW. 

ITS NATURE AND EFFECTS. 

The law is the chief and most pure resemblance of 
the justice and holiness of the heavenly Majesty, and doth 
hold forth to all men the sharpness and keenness of his 
wrath. 

This is the rule and line and plummet whereby every 



NATURE AND EFFECTS OF THE LAW. 65 

act of every man shall be measured ; and he whose 
righteousness is not found every way answerable to this 
law, which all will fall short of but they that have the 
righteousness of God by faith in Jesus Christ, he must 
perish. 



The law is spiritual, I am carnal. Therefore every re- 
quirement is rejected and rebelled against. Strike a steel 
against a flint, and the fire flies about you. Strike the law 
against a carnal heart, and sin appears, sin multiplies, sin 
rageth, sin is strengthened. 



Sin seen in the glass of the law is a terrible thing ; no 
man can behold it and live. "When the commandment 
came, sin revived and I died;" when it came from God to 
my conscience, as managed by an almighty arm, then it 
slew me. And now is the time to confess sin, because now 
a soul knows what it is. and sees what it is, both in the 
nature and consequence of it. 



He that is under the law is under the edge of the axe. 



The proper work of the law is to slay the soul, and 
leave it dead, in a helpless state. 

The law has laid all men for dead as they come into 
the world ; but all men do not see themselves dead, until 
they see the law that struck them dead striking in their 
souls and having struck them that fatal blow. As a man 
that is fast asleep in a house, and that on fire about his 
ears, and he not knowing it because he is asleep ; even so 
because poor souls are asleep in sin, though the wrath of 
God, the curse of his law, and the flames of hell have 
beset them round about, yet they do not believe it because 
they are asleep in sin. Now, as he that is awakened and 
sees this, sees that through this he is a dead man, even so 
they that see their state by nature, being such a sad condi- 



66 RICHES OF BUNYATvT. 

tion, do also see themselves by that law to be dead men 
naturally. 



Take heed of fleshly wisdom. Reasoning suiteth much 
with the law : " I thought verily that I ought to do many 
things against the name of Jesus," and so to have sought 
for life by the law. For thus reason will say, Here is a 
righteous lav/, the rule of life and death ; besides, what 
can be better than to love God, and my neighbor as myself? 
Again, God has thus commanded, and his commands are 
just and good ; therefore, doubtless, life must come by the 
law. Further, to love God and keep the law, are better 
than to sin and break it ; and seeing men lost heaven by 
sin, how should they get it again but by working righteous- 
ness ? Besides, God is righteous, and will therefore bless 
the righteous. the holiness of the law ! It mightily 
swayeth with reason when a man addicts himself to relig- 
ion. The light of nature teaches that sin is not the way 
to heaven ; and seeing no word doth more condemn sin 
than the words of the ten commandments, it must needs be 
therefore the most perfect rule for holiness. Wherefore, 
says reason, the safest way to life and glory is to keep my- 
self close to the law. But though the law indeed be holy, 
yet the mistake as to the matter in hand is as wide as the 
east from the west ; for therefore the law can do thee no 
good, because it is holy and just ; for what can he that has 
sinned expect from a law that is holy and just ? Naught 
but condemnation. "There is one that accuseth you, even 
Moses in whom ye trust." 

Here is the poison ; to set this law in the room of a 
Mediator, as those do who seek to stand just before God 
thereby. And then nothing is so dishonorable to Christ, 
nor of so soul-destroying a nature as the law ; for that, 
thus placed, has not only power when souls are deluded, 
but power to delude by its real holiness, the understand- 
ing, conscience, and reason of a man ; and by giving the 



NATURE AND EFFECTS OF THE LAW. 67 

soul a semblance of heaven, to cause it to throw away 
Christ, grace, and faith. 



Alas, he who boasteth himself in the works of the law, 
he doth not hear the law. When that speaks, it shakes 
mount Sinai, and writeth death upon all faces, and makes 
the church itself cry out, A Mediator ! else we die. 



The law out of Christ is terrible as a lion ; the law in 
him is meek as a lamb. 



Faithful. "So I went on my way up the hill. Now 
when I had got about half-way up, I looked behind me and 
saw one coming after me swift as the wind ; so he overtook 
me just about the place where the settle stands. 

" So soon as the man overtook me, he was but a word 
and a blow ; for down he knocked me, and laid me for 
dead. But when I was a little come to myself again, I 
asked him wherefore he served me so. He said, ' Because 
of thy secret inclination to Adam the first ;' and with 
that he struck me another deadly blow on the breast, and 
beat me down backwards ; so I lay at his foot as dead as 
before. When I came to myself again, I cried to him for 
mercy ; but he said, ' I know not how to show mercy ;' 
and with that knocked me down again. He had doubtless 
made an end of me, but that one came by and bid him 
forbear." 

Christian. " Who was it that bid him forbear ?" 

Faithful. "I did not know him at first, but as he 
went by I perceived the holes in his hands and his side , 
then I concluded that he was our Lord. So I went up the 
hill." 

Christian. " The man that overtook you was Moses. 
He spareth none, neither knoweth he how to show mercy 
to those that transgress his law." 

Faithful. " I know it very well ; it was not the first 



68 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

time that he has met with me. It was he that came to 
me when I dwelt securely at home, and that told me he 
would hum my house over my head if I staid there." 



This ungodly fear of God, is that which will put men 
upon adding to the revealed will of God their own inven- 
tions and their own performances of them, as a means to 
pacify the anger of God. For the truth is, where this 
ungodly fear reigneth, there is no end of law and duty. 
When those that you read of in the hook of Kings, 2 Kings, 
17 : 26, were destroyed hy the lions hecause they had set 
up idolatry in the land of Israel, they sent for a priest from 
Bahylon that might teach them the manner of the God of 
the land ; but behold, when they knew it, being taught it by 
the priest, yet their fear would not suffer them to be content 
with that worship only. " They feared the Lord," saith 
the text, " and served their own gods." And again, " So 
these nations feared the Lord, and served their graven im- 
ages." It was this fear also that put the Pharisees upon 
inventing so many traditions ; as the washing of cups, and 
beds, and tables, and basins, with abundance of such other 
gear. Mark 7 : 4. None knows the many dangers that an 
ungodly fear of God will drive a man into. 

How has it racked and tortured the papists for hundreds 
of years together ! for what else is the cause but this un- 
godly fear, at least in the most simple and harmless of 
them, of their penances — as creeping to the cross, going 
barefoot on pilgrimage, whipping themselves, wearing of 
sackcloth, saying so many pater-nosters, so ma,ny Ave-Ma- 
rias, making so many confessions to the priest, giving so 
much money for pardons, and abundance of other the like — 
but this ungodly fear of God ? For could they be brought to 
believe this doctrine, that Christ was delivered for our 
offences and raised again for our justification, and to apply 
it by faith with godly boldness to their own souls, this fear 
would vanish, and so consequently all those things with 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL. 69 

which they so needlessly aad unprofitably afflict themselves, 
offend God, and grieve his people. 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL. 

Thou must have salvation either at the door of the law 
or at the door of grace. " But," say est thou, " I am ibr 
having it at the hands of both. I will trust solely to 
neither. I love to have two strings to my how. If one of 
them, as you think, can help me by itself, my reason tells 
me that both can help me better ; therefore will I be 
righteous and good, and will seek by my goodness to be 
commended to the mercy of God ; for surely he that hath 
something of his own to ingratiate himself into the favor of 
his prince withal, shall sooner obtain his mercy and favor 
than one that comes to him stripped of all good." 

I answer, "But there are not two ways to heaven: 
there is but one ' new and living way which Christ hath 
consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh ;' 
and besides that one, there is no more. Heb. 10 : 19-24. 
"Why then dost thou talk of two strings to thy bow ?" 

Mercy then is to be found alone in Jesus Christ. Again, 
the righteousness of the law is to be obtained only by faith 
of Jesus Christ ; that is, in the Son of God is the righteous- 
ness of the law to be found ; for he, by his obedience to his 
Father, is become the end of the law for righteousness. 
And for the sake of his legal righteousness — which is also 
called the righteousness of God, because it was God in the 
flesh of the Lord Jesus that did* accomplish it — are mercy 
and grace from God extended to whomsoever dependeth by 
faith upon God, by this righteousness of Jesus, for them. 



He that is dark as touching the scope, intents, and na- 
ture of the law, is also dark as to the scope, nature, and 
glory of the gospel. 



I must confess it is a wonderful mysterious thing, and 



70 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

he had need have a wiser spirit than his own that can 
rightly set these two covenants in their right places, that 
when he speaks of the one he doth not jostle the other out 
of its place. 0, to be so well enlightened as to speak of the 
one, that is the law, for to magnify the gospel — and also 
to speak of the gospel so as to establish and yet not to idol- 
ize the law, nor any particulars thereof — it is rare ; and 
to be heard and found but in very few men's breasts. 



A man may appeal from the law to the throne, from 
Moses to Christ — from him that spoke on earth to him 
that speaks from heaven ; but from heaven to earth, from 
Christ to Moses, none can appeal. Acts 3 : 22, 23. 



Tell me, you that desire to mingle the law and the 
gospel together, and to make of both one and the same 
gospel of Christ, did you ever see yourselves undone and 
lost, unless the righteousness, blood, death, resurrection, 
and intercession of that man Christ Jesus in his own per- 
son, were imputed to you ; and until you could by faith 
own it as* done for you, and counted yours by imputation ? 
Yea, or no ? Nay, rather, have you not set up your con- 
sciences and the law, and counted your obedience to them 
better and of more value than the obedience of the Son of 
Mary without you to be imputed to you ? And if so, it is 
because you have not been savingly convinced by the Spirit 
of Christ of the sin of unbelief. 



I would not be mistaken ; I do not say that the Spirit 
of Christ gives the least liberty to sin ; God forbid ; but its 
onvictions are of a more saving and refreshing nature than 
the convictions of the law, and do more constrain the soul 
to holiness than that : the law saying, Work for life ; the 
Spirit saying, JSTow to him that worketh not (for life,) but 
belicveth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is 
counted for righteousness. As thus : if I should owe to 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL. ?i 

two creditors ten thousand talents, the one should say unto 
me, <; Thou owest me five thousand talents, pay that thou 
owest;" the other should say, "Thou owest me five thou- 
sand talents, and I frankly and freely forgive thee all." 

Now, these expressions are contrary one to another ; 
even so is the end of the convictions of the law not accord- 
ing to the end of the convictions of the Spirit of Christ : the 
one saying, " Pay me that thou owest ;" the other saying, 
11 Thou art frankly and freely forgiven all." 



Then the Interpreter took Christian by the hand, and 
led him into a very large parlor that was full of dust, be- 
cause never swept ; the which, after he had reviewed it a 
little while, the Interpreter called for a man to sweep. 
Now, when he began to sweep, the dust began so abun- 
dantly to fly about, that Christian had almost therewith 
been choked. Then said the Interpreter to a damsel that 
stood by, " Bring hither water and sprinkle the room ;" 
the which, when she had done, it was swept and cleansed 
with pleasure. 

Then said Christian, " What means this ?" 

The Interpreter answered, " This parlor is the heart of 
a man that was never sanctified by the sweet grace of the 
gospel ; the dust is his original sin and inward corruptions 
that have defiled the whole man. He that began to sweep 
at first is the law ; but she that brought water and did 
sprinkle it, is the gospel. Now whereas thou sawest that 
so soon as the first began to sweep, the dust did so fly about 
that the room by him could not be cleansed, but that thou 
wast almost choked therewith : this is to show thee that 
the law, instead of cleansing the heart by its working, from 
sin, doth revive, put strength into, and increase it in the 
soul, even as it doth discover and forbid it ; for it doth not 
give power to subdue it. Horn. 5 : 20 ; 7:11; 1 Cor. 
15:56. 

11 Again, as thou sawest the damsel sprinkle the room 



72 RICHES OF BTJNYAN. 

with water, upon which it was cleansed with pleasure ; 
this is to show thee that when the gospel comes in the 
sweet and precious influences thereof to the heart, then, I 
say, even as thou sawest the damsel lay the dust hy sprin- 
kling the floor with water, so is sin vanquished and sub- 
dued, and the soul made clean through the faith of it, and 
consequently fit for the King of glory to inhabit. John 
14 : 21-23 ; 15 : 3 ; Acts 15 : 9 : Rom. 16 : 25, 26 ; Eph. 
5 :26. 



When Christ dwells in my heart by faith and the moral 
law dwells in my members, the one to keep up peace with 
God, the other to keep my conversation in a good decorum, 
then am I right, and not till then. 

But this will not be done without much experience, 
diligence, and delight in Christ. For there is nothing that 
Satan more desires, than that the law may abide in the 
conscience of an awakened Christian, and there take up 
the place of Christ and faith ; for he knows if this may be 
obtained, the veil is presently drawn over the face of the 
soul, and the heart darkened as to the knowledge of Christ ; 
and being darkened, the man is driven into despair of 
mercy, or is put upon it to work for life. There is there- 
fore much diligence required of him that will keep these 
two in their places assigned them of God ; much diligent 
study of the word, diligent prayer, with diligence to walk 
with God in the world. 



When this law with its thundering threatenings doth 
attempt to lay hold on thy conscience, shut it out with a 
promise of grace : cry, The inn is taken up already ; the 
Lord Jesus is here entertained, and here is no room for the 
law. Indeed, if it will be content with being my informer, 
and so lovingly leave off to judge me, I will be content ; it 
shall be in my sight, I will also delight therein : but 
otherwise, I being now made upright without it, and that 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL. 73 

too with that righteousness which this law speaks well of 
and approveth, I may not, will not, cannot, dare not make 
it my saviour and judge, nor suffer it to set up its govern- 
ment in my conscience ; for by so doing I fall from grace, 
and Christ Jesus doth profit me nothing. 



The sum then of w T hat hath been said is this : the 
Christian hath now nothing to do with the law as it 
thunder eth and burnetii on Sinai, or as it bindeth the con- 
science to wrath and the displeasure of God for sin ; for 
from its thus appearing he is freed by faith in Christ. Yet 
he is to have regard thereto, and is to count it holy, just, 
and good ; which that he may do, he is always, whenever 
he seeth or regards it, to remember that he who giveth it 
to us is merciful, gracious, long-suffering, and abundant 
in goodness and truth. 



Here thou mayst say, law, thou mayst roar against 
sin, but thou canst not reach me ; thou mayst curse and 
condemn, but not my soul ; for I have a righteous Jesus* a 
holy Jesus, a soul-saving Jesus, and he hath delivered me 
from thy threats, thy curses, thy condemnations ; I am out 
of thy reach and out of thy bounds ; I am brought into 
another covenant, under better promises of life and salva- 
tion, free promises to comfort me without my merit, even 
through the blood of Jesus, the satisfaction given to God 
for me by him. 



The law is that which standeth at the entrance of the 
paradise of God, as a naming sword, turning every way to 
keep out those that are not righteous with the righteousness 
of God — that have not skill to come to the throne of grace 
by that new and living way which he hath consecrated for 
us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh. For though 
this law, I say, be taken away by Christ Jesus for all that 
truly and savingly believe, yet it remains in full force and 

Riches of Bunyan. 4 



74 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

power in every tittle of it against every soul of man that 
now shall be found in his tabernacle, that is in himself 
and out of the Lord Jesus ; it lieth, I say, like a lion ram- 
pant at the gates of heaven, and will roar upon every un- 
converted soul, fiercely accusing every one that now would 
gladly enter in through the gates into this city. So then, 
he that can answer all its most perfect and legal com- 
mands, and that can live in the midst of devouring fire 
and there enjoy God and solace himself, he shall dwell on 
high and shall not be hurt by this law. His place of de- 
fence shall be the munitions of rocks ; bread shall be given 
him, and his waters shall be sure ; thine eyes shall behold 
the King in his beauty, they shall see the land that is 
very far off. 

THE LAW A HULE OF LIFE. 
The law is cast behind the back of many, when it 
should be carried in the hand and heart that we might do 
it, to the end the gospel which we profess might be glori- 
fied in the world. Let then the law be with thee to love 
it, and do it in the spirit of the gospel, that thou be not un- 
fruitful in thy life. Let the law, I say, be with thee, not 
as it comes from Moses, but from Christ ; for though thou 
art set free from the law as a covenant for life, yet thou 
still art under the law to Christ ; and it is to be received 
by thee, as out of his hand, to be a rule for thy conversa- 
tion in the world. 



OPERATION OF GRACE. 75 

VI. DIVINE GRACE. 

GRACE, LOVE, AND MERCY. 

I find that the goodness of God to his people is di- 
versely expressed in his word, sometimes by the word grace, 
sometimes by the word love, and sometimes by the word 
mercy. When it is expressed by that word grace, then it is 
to show that what he doeth is of his princely will, his royal 
bounty, and sovereign pleasure. When it is expressed by 
that word love, then it is to show us that his affection was 
and is in what he doeth, and that he doeth what he doeth 
for us with complacency and delight. But when it is set 
forth to us under the notion of mercy, then it bespeaks us 
to be in a state both wretched and miserable, and that his 
bowels and compassions yearn over us in this our fearful 
plight. 

GRACE DESCRIBED. 
There are many things which men call the grace of 
God that are not. 

1. The light and knowledge that are in every man. 

2. That natural willingness that is in man to be saved. 

3. That power that is in man by nature to do something, 
as he thinketh, towards his own salvation. 

But do thou remember that the grace of God is his 
good-will and great love to sinners, in his Son Jesus 
Christ ; by the which good-will they are sanctified, through 
the offering up of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 



His blood is not laws, nor ordinances, nor command- 
ments, but a price, a redeeming price. He justifies us by 
bestowing upon us, not by expecting from us. He justifies 
us by his grace, not by our works. 



OPERATION OF GRACE. 
The good child is not the first-born, but Abel. God 



76 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

often doth as Jacob did, even cross hands in bestowing 
blessings, giving that which is best to him that is least 
esteemed ; for Cain was " the man" in Eve's esteem: she 
thought, when she had him, she had got an inheritance ; 
but as for Abel (vanity,) he was little worth; by his name 
they showed how little they set by him. 

It is so with the sincere to this day ; they bear not the 
name of glory with the world: Cain with them is the 
profitable son ; Abel is of no credit with them, neither see 
they form or comeliness in him ; he is the melancholy or 
lowering child whose countenance spoils the mirth of the 
world. " The heart of the wise is in the house of mourn- 
ing, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth." 

Abel, last in appearance, but in truth the first in grace ; 
as it also is at this day. Who do so flutter it out as our 
ruffling, formal worshippers ? Alas, the good, the sincere, 
the humble, they seem to be least and last ; but the con- 
clusion of the tragedy will make manifest that the first 
is last and the last first. 



" And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offer- 
ing. " Herein are the true footsteps of grace discovered ; 
the person must be the first in favor with God — the person 
first, the performance afterwards : for though it be true 
among men that the gift makes way for the acceptance of 
the person, yet in the order of grace it is after another 
manner ; for if the person be not first accepted, the offering 
must be abominable ; for it is not a good work that makes 
a good man, but a good man makes a good work. The 
fruit does not make a good tree, but a good tree bringeth 
forth good fruit. 

Abel then presented his person and offering, as shroud- 
ing both by faith under the righteousness of Christ, which 
lay wrapped up in the promise ; but Cain stands upon his 
own legs, and so presents his offering. Abel therefore is 
accepted, both his person and offering, while Cain remains 



OPERATION OF G-RACE. 77 

accursed. This then makes the difference betwixt Abel 
and his brother ; Abel had faith, but Cain had none. 
Abel's faith covered him with Jesus Christ ; therefore he 
stood righteous in his person before God. 



There is a man proceeded against for life by the law, 
and the sentence of death is in conclusion most justly and 
righteously passed upon him by the judge. Suppose now, 
that after this, this man lives and is exalted to honor, 
enjoys great things, and is put into place of trust and pow- 
er, and this by him that he has offended, even by him that 
did pass the sentence upon him. 

What will all say, or what will they conclude, even 
upon the very first hearing of this story ? Will they not 
say, " Well, w r hoever he was that found himself Avrapped 
up in this strange providence, must thank the mercy of a 
gracious prince ; for all these things bespeak grace and 
favor ?" 



Forgiveness is according to the riches of God's grace, 
wherein he has abounded towards us in all wisdom and 
prudence. Grace can continue to pardon, favor, and save — 
from falls, in falls, and out of falls. Grace can comfort, 
relieve, and help those that have hurt themselves ; and 
grace can bring the unworthy to glory. This the law 
cannot do ; this man cannot do ; this angels cannot do ; 
this God cannot do, but only by the riches of his grace, 
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 



A throne is the seat of majesty and greatness ; it is 
not for things of an inferior quality to ascend or assume a 
throne. Now, then, since this river of water of life pro- 
ceeds from the throne, it intimates that in grace and mercy 
there is great majesty ; for grace, as it proceeds, has a 
voice from the throne. And indeed there is nothing in 
heaven or earth that can so awe the heart as the grace of 



78 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

God. Hos. 3 : 5. It is that which makes a man fear ; it 
is that which makes a man tremble ; it is that which 
makes a man bow and bend, and break to pieces. Jer. 
33 : 9 ; Exod. 34 : 6-9. Nothing has such majesty, and 
commanding greatness in and upon the hearts of the sons 
of men, as has the grace of God. There is nothing over- 
mastereth the heart like grace, and so obligeth to sincere 
and unfeigned obedience as that. 



Strong grace makes corruptions weak and strikes them 
through, laying them at the point of death, always gasp- 
ing for life. 



Mercy and the revelation thereof is the only antidote 
against sin. It is of a thawing nature ; it will loose the 
heart that is frozen up in sin ; yea, it will make the 
unwilling willing to come to Christ for life. 



Some say, When grace and a good nature meet together, 
they do make shining Christians ; but I say, When grace 
and a great sinner meet, and when grace shall subdue that 
great sinner to itself, and shall operate after its kind in 
the soul of that great sinner, then we have a shining 
Christian. 



Men may fall by sin, but cannot raise up themselves 
without the help of grace. 



There were two men that went on pilgrimage ; the one 
began when he was young, the other when he was old : 
the young man had strong corruptions to grapple with, 
the old man's were weak with the decays of nature : the 
young man trode his steps as even as did the old one, 
and was every way as light as he. Who now, or which of 
them, had their graces shining clearest, since both seemed 
to be alike ? The young man's, doubtless ; for that which 



OPERATION OF G-RACE. 79 

heads it against the greatest opposition, gives best demon- 
stration that it is strongest. 



As nature, even where grace is. cannot without the 
assistance of that grace do any thing acceptably before 
God ; so grace received, if it be not also supplied with more 
grace, cannot cause that we continue to do acceptable ser- 
vice to God. 

A present dispensation of grace is like a good meal, a 
seasonable shower, or a penny in one's pocket, all of which 
will serve for the present necessity. But will that good 
meal that I ate last week enable me without supply to do 
a good day's work in this? or, will that seasonable shower 
which fell last year, be, without supplies, a seasonable 
help to the grain and grass that is growing now ? or will 
that penny that supplied my want the other day — I say, 
will the same penny also, without a supply, supply my 
wants to-day? 

The day of grace is the day of expense ; this is our 
spending time. Hence we are called pilgrims and strangers 
in the earth ; that is, travellers from place to place, from 
state to state, from trial to trial. Kow, as the traveller at 
the fresh inn is made to spend fresh money, so Christians, 
at a fresh temptation, at a new temptation, are made to 
spend fresh and a new supply of grace. Great men, when 
and while their sons are travellers, appoint that their bags 
of money be lodged ready or conveniently paid in at such 
and such a place; and so they meet with supplies. Why, 
so are the sons of the great One ; and he has allotted that 
we should travel beyond sea, or at a great distance from 
our Father's house : wherefore he has appointed that grace 
shall be provided for us, to supply at such a place, such a 
state or temptation, as need requires. But withal, as my 
lord expecteth his son should acquaint him with the pres- 
ent emptiness of his purse and with the difficulty he hath 
now to grapple with; so God our Father expects that we 



80 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

should plead by Christ our need at the throne of grace, in 
order to a supply of grace. " Let us therefore come boldly 
to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find 
grace to help in time of need." 



Then I saw in my dream that the Interpreter took 
Christian by the hand, and led him into a place where was 
a lire burning against a wall, and one standing by it always 
casting much water upon it to quench it ; yet did the fire 
burn higher and hotter. 

Then said Christian, " What means this ?■" 
The Interpreter answered, "This fire is the work of 
grace that is wrought in the heart ; he that casts water 
upon it to extinguish and put it out, is the devil ; but in 
that thou seest the fire notwithstanding burn higher and 
hotter, thou shaft also see the reason of that," So he had 
him about to the backside of the wall, where he saw a 
man with a vessel of oil in his hand, of which he did also 
continually cast, but secretly, into the fire. 
Then said Christian, " What means this ?" 
The Interpreter answered, " This is Christ, who con- 
tinually with the oil of his grace maintains the work 
already begun in the heart ; by the means of which, not- 
withstanding what the devil can do, the souls of his people 
prove gracious still. 2 Cor. 12:9. And in that thou 
sawest that the man stood behind the Avail to maintain 
the fire ; this is to teach thee that it is hard for the 
tempter to see how this work of grace is maintained in 
the soul." 



There is to be seen at the bottom of this holy river, the 
glory of God. We are saved, saved by grace, saved by 
grace through the redemption that is in Christ, to the 
praise and glory of God. And what a good bottom is 
here. Grace will not fail, Christ has been sufnciently 
tried, and God will not lose his glory ; therefore they that 



OPERATION OF G-RACE. 81 

drink of this river, shall doubtless be saved ; to wit, they 
that drink of it with a spiritual appetite to it. 



It pleased God, for the glory of his wisdom, to make 
this the way ; to wit, to set up grace to reign. I have 
often thought, and sometimes said, If God will be pleased 
with any way, surely he will be pleased with his own. 
Now this is the way of his own devising, the fruit and 
effect of his own wisdom. Wherefore, sinner, please him, 
please him in that wherein he is well pleased ; come to 
the waters, cast thyself into them and fear not drowning ; 
let God alone to cause them to carry thee into his paradise, 
that thou may est see his throne. 



Let us take notice of the carriage of God to man, and 
again of man to God, in his conversion. 

First, of God's carriage to man. He comes to him 
while he is in his sins ; he comes to him now, not in the 
heat and fire of his jealousy, but in the cool of the day, in 
unspeakable gentleness, mercy, pity, and love — not in 
clothing himself with vengeance, but in a way of entreaty, 
and meekly beseecheth the sinner to be reconciled unto 
him. 2 Cor. 5 : 19, 20. 

It is expected among men, that he who gives the 
offence, should be the first in seeking peace ; but, sinner, 
betwixt God and man it is not so : not that we loved God, 
not that we chose God ; but God was in Christ reconciling 
the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto 
them. God is the first that seeketh peace; and in a way 
of entreaty, he bids his ministers pray you in Christ's 
stead : " As if God did beseech you by us, we pray you in 
Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." 

sinner, wilt thou not open ? Behold, God the 

Father and his Son Jesus Christ stand both at the door of 

thy heart, beseeching there for favor from thee, that thou 

wilt be reconciled to them ; with the promise, if thou wilt 

4* 



82 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

comply, to forgive thee all thy sins. grace, amazing 
grace ! To see a prince entreat a beggar to receive an 
alms, would be a strange sight ; to see a king entreat the 
traitor to accept of mercy, would be a stranger sight than 
that ; but to see God entreat a sinner, to hear Christ say, 
" I stand at the door and knock, with a heart full and a 
heaven full of grace to bestow upon him that opens;" 
this is such a sight as dazzles the eyes of angels. What 
sayest thou now, sinner ? Is not this God rich in mercy ? 
hath not this God great love for sinners ? Nay, further, 
that thou rnayst not have any ground to think that all this 
is but complimenting, there is also here declared, that 
" God hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin, 
that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.' , 
If God would have stuck at any thing, it would have been 
at the death of his Son ; but he delivered him up for us 
freely : how shall he not then with him freely give us all 
things ? 



Let us now come to the carriage of these sinners to 
God, and that from the first day he begins to deal with 
their souls, even to the time that they are to be taken up 
into heaven. 

1. And to begin with God's ordinary dealing with sin- 
ners : when at first he ministers conviction to them by his 
word, how strangely do they behave themselves. They 
love not to have their consciences touched; they like not 
to ponder upon what they have been, what they are, or 
what is like to become of them hereafter : such thoughts 
they count unmanly and hurtful. And now they are for 
any thing rather than the word : an alehouse, a playhouse, 
sports, pleasures, sleep, the world, and what not, so they 
may stave off the power of the word of God. 

2. If God now comes up closer to them, and begins to 
fasten conviction upon the conscience, though such convic- 
tions be the first step to faith and repentance, yea, to life 



OPERATION OF G-RACE. 83 

eternal, yet what shifts will they have to forget them and 
wear them off! Yea, although they now begin to see that 
they must either turn or burn, yet ofttimes they will study 
to waive a present conversion. They object, they are too 
young to turn yet ; seven years hence is time enough ; 
when they are old, or come upon a sick bed. 

what an enemy is man to his own salvation ! I am 
persuaded that God has visited some of you often with his 
word, and you have thrown water, as fast as he hath by 
the word cast fire, upon your conscience. 

Christian, what had become of thee, if God had taken 
thy denial for an answer, and said, "Then will I carry the 
word of salvation to another, and he will hear it ?" 

• Sinner, turn !" says God. "Lord, I cannot attend to 
it," says the sinner. " Turn or burn," says God. "I will 
venture that," says the sinner. " Turn and be saved," says 
God. " I cannot leave my pleasures," says the sinner ; 
"sweet sins, sweet pleasures, sweet delights," says the sin- 
ner. But what grace is it in God thus to parley with the 
sinner ! the patience of God to a poor sinner ! What if 
God should now say, " Then get thee to thy sins, get thee 
to thy delights, get thee to thy pleasures, take them for thy 
portion; they shall be all thy heaven, all thy happiness, 
all thy portion?" 

3. But God comes again, and shows the sinner the 
necessity of turning now or not at all ; yea, and giveth 
the sinner this conviction so strongly that he cannot put it 
off. But behold, the sinner has one spark of enmity still : 
if he must needs turn now, he will either turn from one 
sin to another, from great ones to little ones, from many to 
few, or from all to one, and there stop. But perhaps convic- 
tions will not thus leave him. Why, then he will turn 
from profaneness to the law of Moses, and will dwell as 
long as God will let him, upon his own seeming goodness. 
And now observe him, he is a great stickler for legal per- 
formance ; now he will be a good neighbor, he will pay 



84 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

every man his own, will leave off his swearing, the ale- 
house, his sports, and carnal delights ; he will read, pray, 
talk of scripture, and he a very husy one in religion, such 
as it is ; now he will please God, and make him amends 
for all the wrong he has done him, and will feed him with 
chapters, and prayers, and promises, and vows, and a great 
many more such dainty dishes as these ; persuading him- 
self that now he must he fair for heaven, and thinks besides 
that he serveth God as well as any man : hut all this while 
he is as ignorant of Christ as the stool he sits on, and no 
nearer heaven than was the blind Pharisee, only he has 
got in a cleaner way to hell than the rest of his neighbors 
are. 

Might not God now cast off this sinner, and cast him 
out of his sight ? might he not leave him to his own choice, 
to be deluded by and to fall in his own righteousness, be- 
cause he trusts to it and commits iniquity ? 

But grace, preventing grace preserves him. It is true, 
this turn of the sinner is a turning short of Christ. But, 

4. God in this way of the sinner will mercifully follow 
him, and show him the shortness of his performances, the 
emptiness of his duties, and the uncleanness of his right- 
eousness. This I speak of the sinner, the salvation of 
whose soul is graciously intended and contrived of God ; 
for he shall by gospel light be wearied out of all ; he shall 
be made to see the vanity of all, and that the personal 
righteousness of Jesus Christ, and that only, is it which of 
God is ordained to save the sinner from the due reward of 
his sins. But behold, the sinner now, at the sight and 
sense of his own nothingness, falleth into a kind of despair ; 
for although he hath it in him to presume of salvation 
through the delusiveness of his own good opinion of him- 
self, yet he hath it not in himself to have a good opinion of 
the grace of God in the righteousness of Christ. Wherefore 
he concludeth that if salvation be alone of the grace of God 
through the righteousness of Christ, and all of a man's own 



OPERATION OF GRACE. 85 

is utterly rejected as to trie justification of his person with 
God, then he is cast away. 

Now, the reason of this sinking of heart is the sight 
that God has given him — a sight of the uncleanness of his 
best performance. The former sight of his immoralities 
did somewhat distress him, and make him betake himself 
to his own good deeds to ease his conscience ; wherefore 
this was his prop, his stay. But behold, now God has 
taken this from under him, and now he falls. Wherefore 
his best doth also now forsake him, and fly away like the 
morning dew. 

Besides, this revelation of the emptiness of his own 
righteousness brings also with it a further discovery of the 
naughtiness of his heart, in its hypocrisies, pride, unbelief, 
hardness of heart, deadness, and backwardness to all gospel 
obedience ; which sight of himself lies like millstones upon 
his shoulders, and sinks him yet further into doubts and 
fears of damnation. For bid him now receive Christ ; he 
answers, he cannot, he dares not. Ask him why he cannot ; 
he will answer, he has no faith nor hope in his heart. Tell 
him that grace is offered him freely ; he says, " But I have 
no heart to receive it." Besides, he finds not, as he thinks, 
any gracious disposition in his soul, and therefore concludes 
he does not belong to God's mercy, nor has an interest in 
the blood of Christ, and therefore dares not presume to 
believe. Wherefore he sinks in his heart, he dies in his 
thoughts, he doubts, he despairs, and concludes he shall 
never be saved. 

5. But behold, the God of all grace leaves him not in 
this distress, but comes up now to him closer than ever ; 
he sends the Spirit of adoption, the blessed Comforter, to 
him to tell him God is love, and therefore not willing to 
reject the broken in heart ; bids him cry and pray for an 
evidence of mercy to his soul, and says, " Peradventure 
you may be hid in the day of the Lord's anger." 

At this the sinner takes some encouragement ; yet he 



86 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

can get no more than that which will hang upon a mere 
probability, which, by the next doubt that ariseth in the 
heart, is blown quite away, and the soul left again in its 
first plight, or worse ; where he lamentably bewails his 
miserable state, and is tormented with a thousand fears of 
perishing ; for he hears not a word from heaven, perhaps 
for several weeks together. Wherefore unbelief begins to 
get the mastery of him, and takes off the very edge and 
spirit of prayer, and inclination to hear the word any 
longer ; yea, the devil also claps in with these thoughts, 
saying, " All your prayers, and hearing, and reading, and 
godly company, which you frequent, will rise up in judg- 
ment against you at last ; therefore better it is, if you must 
be damned, to choose as easy a place in hell as you can." 

The soul at this being quite discouraged, thinks to do 
as it has been taught, and with dying thoughts it begins to 
faint when it goes to prayer or to hear the word. But be- 
hold, when all hope seems to be quite gone, and the soul 
concludes, " I die, I perish," in comes on a sudden the 
Spirit of God again, with some good word of God which 
the soul never thought of before ; which word of God 
commands a calm in the soul, makes unbelief give place, 
encourages to hope and wait upon God again : perhaps it 
gives some little sight of Christ to the soul, and of his 
blessed undertaking for sinners. 

But behold, so soon as the power of things again begins 
to wear off the heart, the sinner gives place to unbelief, ques- 
tions God's mercy, and fears damning again. He also enter- 
tains hard thoughts of God and Christ, and thinks former 
encouragements were fancies, delusions, or mere think-sos. 

And why doth not God now cast the sinner to hell, for 
thus abusing his mercy and grace ? no : " He will have 
mercy on whom he will have mercy, and he will have 
compassion on whom he will have compassion ;" wherefore 
goodness and mercy shall follow him all the days of his 
life, that he may dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. 



OPERATION OF GRACE. 87 

6. God, therefore, after all these provocations, comes 
by his Spirit to the soul again, and brings sealing grace 
and pardon to the conscience, testifying to it that its sins 
are forgiven and that freely, for the sake of the blood of 
Christ. And now has the sinner such a sight of the grace 
of God in Christ, as kindly breaks his heart with joy and 
comfort. Now the soul knows what it is to eat promises ; 
it also knows what it is to eat and drink the flesh and blood 
of Jesus Christ by faith ; now it is driven by the power 
of his grace to its knees, to thank God for forgiveness of 
sins and for hopes of an inheritance among them that are 
sanctified by faith which is in Christ ; now it has a calm 
and a sunshine ; now " he washes his steps with butter, 
and the rock pours him out rivers of oil." 

7. But after this, perhaps the soul grows cold again ; it 
also forgets the grace received, and waxes carnal ; begins 
again to hanker after the world ; loseth the life and savor 
of heavenly things ; grieves the Spirit of God ; wofully 
backslides ; casteth off closet duties quite, or else retains 
only the formality of them ; is a reproach to religion, and 
grieves the heart of them that are awake and tender of 
God's name. 

But what will God now do ? Will he take this advan- 
tage to destroy the sinner ? No. Will he let him alone in 
his apostasy? No. Will he leave him to recover himself 
by the strength of his now languishing grace? No. What 
then ? Why, he will seek this man out till he finds him, 
and bring him home to himself again : " For thus saith the 
Lord God, Behold I, even I, will both search my sheep, and 
seek them out, as a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the 
day that he is among the sheep that are scattered ; so will 
I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places 
where they have been scattered. I will seek that which 
was lost, and bring again that which was driven away ; I 
will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen 
that which was sick." Ezek. 34 : 11-16. 



88 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Of God's ordinary way of fetching the backslider home 
I will not now discourse ; namely, whether he always 
breaketh his bones for his sins, as he broke David's, or 
whether he will all the days of his life for this leave him 
under guilt and darkness ; or whether he will kill him now, 
that he may not be condemned in the day of judgment, as 
he dealt with them at Corinth. 1 Cor. 11 : 30-32. 

God is wise, and can tell how to imbitter backsliding 
to them he loveth. He can break their bones and save 
them ; he can lay them in the lowest pit, in darkness and 
the deep, and save them ; he can slay them as to this life, 
and save them. And herein appears wonderful grace, that 
Israel is not forsaken. 

8. But suppose God deals not either of these ways with 
the backslider, but shines upon him again, and seals up to 
him the remission of his sms a second time, saying, " I will 
heal their backslidings, and love them freely." "What will 
the soul do now ? Surely it will walk humbly now, and 
holily, all its days. It will never backslide again, will it ? 
It may happen it will not ; it may happen it will. It is 
just as his God keeps him ; for although his sins are of him- 
self, his standing is of God ; I say, his standing while he 
stands, and his recovery if he falls, are both of God. Where- 
fore, if God leaves him a little, the next gap he finds, away 
he is gone again : " My people," says God, " are bent to 
backsliding from me." 

Here is grace. So many times as the soul backslides, 
so many times God brings him back again — I mean the soul 
that must be saved by grace ; he renews his pardons and 
multiplies them. Yea, for aught I know, there are some 
saints, and they not long-lived cither, that must receive, 
before they enter into life, millions of pardons from God 
for these ; and every pardon is an act of grace, through 
the redemption that is in Christ's blood. 



The first step to the cure of a wounded conscience is 



GRACE ABUSED. 89 

for thee to know the grace of God, especially the grace of 
God as to justification. 



Grace can pardon our ungodliness and justify us with 
Christ's righteousness ; it can put the Spirit of Jesus Christ 
within us ; it can help us when we are down ; it can heal 
us when we are wounded ; it can multiply pardons, as we 
through frailty multiply transgressions. 



GRACE ABUSED. 
A self-righteous man, a man of the law, takes grace 
and mercy for his greatest enemy. 



The best of things that are of this world are some way 
hurtful. Honey is hurtful, wine is hurtful, silver and gold 
are hurtful ; but grace is not hurtful. Never did man yet 
catch harm by the enjoyment and fulness of the grace of 
God. There is no fear of excess or surfeiting here. Grace 
makes no man proud, no man wanton, no man haughty, no 
man careless or negligent as to his duty that is incumbent 
upon him, towards either God or man. No ; grace keeps a 
man low in his own eyes, humble, self-denying, penitent, 
watchful, savory in good things, charitable ; and makes 
him kindly affectioned to the brethren, pitiful and courte- 
ous to all men. 

True, there are men in the world that abuse the grace 
of God, as some are said to turn it into wantonness and 
into lasciviousness. But this is not because grace has 
any such tendency, but because such men are themselves 
empty of grace, and have only done as death and hell 
have done with wisdom, "heard the fame thereof with 
their ears." 

Some receive the rain of God and the droppings of his 
clouds, because they continually sit under the means of 
grace. But alas, they receive it as stones receive showers, 
or as dunghills receive the rain : they either abide as hard 



90 RICHE.S OF BUNYAN. 

as stones still, or else return nothing to heaven for his 
mercy, but as dunghills do, a company of stinking fumes. 



To slight grace, to do despite to the Spirit of grace, to 
prefer our own works, thus derogating from grace — what 
is it but to contemn God ? to contemn him when he is on 
the throne, when he is on the throne of his glory ? I say 
again, it is to spit in his face, even then when he commands 
thee to bow before him, to be subject unto him, and to 
glorify the grace of his glory, that proceeds from the throne 
of his glory. If men in old time were damned because 
they glorified him not as God, shall not they be more than 
damned, if more than damned can be, who glorify him not 
for his grace ? And, to be sure, none glorify him for his 
grace but those that close in therewith, and submit them- 
selves thereto. Talkers of grace are but mockers of God, 
but flatterers of God. Grace God has exalted ; has set it 
upon the throne, and so made it a king, and given it author- 
ity to reign ; and thou goest by and nearest thereof, but 
wilt not submit thyself thereto, neither thy soul, nor thy 
life. Why, what is this more than to natter God with thy 
lips, and than to lie unto him with thy tongue ? What is 
this but to count him less wise than thyself, while he seeks 
glory by that by which thou wilt not glorify him — while 
he displays his grace before thee in the world from the 
throne, and as thou goest by, with a nod thou callest it a 
fine thing, but followest that which leadeth therefrom? 
Tremble, tremble, ye sinners, that have despised the riches 
of his goodness. The day is coming when ye shall behold 
and wonder and perish, if grace prevaileth not with you to 
be content to be saved by it to the praise of its glory, and 
to the glory of him who hath set it upon the throne. Acts 
13:38-41. 



There is a spring that yields water good and clear, but 
the channels through which this water comes to us are 



THE WATER OF LIFE. 91 

muddy, foul, or dirty ; now of the channels the waters re- 
ceive a disadvantage, and so come to us as savoring of 
what came not with them from the fountain, but from the 
channels. 

This is the cause of the coolness, and of the weakness, 
and of the flatness, and of the many extravagances that 
attend some of our desires : they come warm from the Spirit 
and grace of God in us ; but as hot water running through 
cold pipes, or as clear water running through dirty convey- 
ances, so our desires gather soil. 



GRACE-THE WATER OF LIFE. 

" And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear 
as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the 
Lamb." Rev. 22:1. 

This "water of life" is the Spirit and grace of God, 
and the spirit of life. Zech. 12:10; John 4:10, 11, 14 ; 
7:37-39; Rev. 11:11. 

A throne is the seat of justice : " Justice and judgment 
are the habitation of thy throne." Psal. 89 : 14. And it 
is also from justice that this river of grace flows to us : jus- 
tice to Christ, and justice to those that are found in him. 
Rom. 3 : 24. God declares that he can justly justify, justly 
forgive : now, if he can justly justify and justly forgive, 
then can he give grace and cause that it should proceed to, 
yea, flow after us as a river. But whence must this come ? 
the text says, from the throne — from- the throne, the seat of 
justice ; for from thence, by reason of what He hath found 
in Christ for us, he in a way of righteousness and justice 
lets out to us rivers of his pleasures, whose original is that 
great and w T ide sea of mercy that flows in his infinite heart 
"beyond thought. 



There is a river, clear and pleasant, the streams whereof 
make glad the city of God. 

These are the waters that the doves love to sit by, be- 



92 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

cause by the clearness of these streams they can see their 
pretty selves as in a glass. Song 5:12. 

These be the streams where the doves wash their eyes, 
and by which they solace themselves and take great con- 
tent. These streams are instead of a looking-glass ; their 
clearness presents us with an opportunity of seeing our own 
features. 

As in fair waters a man may see the body of the sun, 
and of the moon, and of the stars, and the very body of 
heaven ; so he that stands upon the bank of this river, and 
that washeth his eyes with this water, may see the Son of 
G-od, the stars of G-od, the glory of God, and the habitation 
that God has prepared for his people. And are not these 
pleasant sights ? Is not this excellent water ? Has not this 
river pleasant streams ? 



Some men fly from the " river of the water of life," as 
from a bear ; and some are afraid to drink of it, for fear it 
should be poison unto them. Some again, dare not take it, 
because it is not mixed, and as they, poor souls, imagine, 
qualified and made toothsome by a little of that which is 
called the wisdom of this world. Thus one shucks, another 
shrinks, and another will none of God. Meanwhile, whoso 
shall please to look into this river, shall find it harmless 
and clear ; yea, offering itself to the consciences of all men 
to make trial if it be not the only chief good, the only nee 
essary waters, the only profitable for the health of the soul, 
of all the things that are in the world, and as clear of mis- 
chief as is the sun of spots. 



In old times the ancients had their habitations by the 
rivers ; yea, we read of Aroer, that stood upon the brink of 
the river Anion. Balaam also had his dwelling in his city 
Pethor, by the river of the land of the children of his people. 
0, by the river side is the pleasantest dwelling in the world ; 
and of all rivers, the river of the water of life is the best. 



THE WATER OF LIFE. 93 

They that dwell there shall not hunger nor thirst, neither 
shall the heat or sun smite them ; for he that hath mercy 
on them shall lead them, even by springs of water shall he 
guide them. Isa. 49 : 10 ; Psal. 1:3; Jer. 17 : 8. 

Trees planted by the rivers, and that spread out their 
roots by the rivers, they are the flourishing trees, they bring 
forth their fruit in their season. And the promise is, that 
men that take up their dwellings by this river of water of 
life, shall be fruitful as such trees. 

If thou be a Christian, thou hast more than an ordinary 
call and occasion to abide by these waters ; thy things will 
not grow but by these waters. Weeds, and the excellen- 
ces of most men, we may find in the barren wilderness ; 
they grow under every hedge, Jer. 31:12; but thine are 
garden, and so choice, things, and will not thrive without 
much water ; no, not without the water of God's river. 
Isa. 21 : 1-3. Dwell therefore here, that thy soul may be 
as a watered garden. 



By the characters that are given of this water of life, 
thou art capacitated to judge, when a notion, a doctrine, 
an opinion comes to thy ears, whether it is right good and 
wholesome, or how. This river is pure, is clear, is pure 
and clear as crystal. Is the doctrine offered unto thee so ? 
or is it muddy and mixed with the doctrines of men ? Look, 
man, and see if the foot of the worshippers of Bel^ be not 
there ; and if the waters be not fouled thereby. "What 
water is fouled is not the water of life, or at least, not the 
water of life in its clearness. Wherefore, if thou fmdest it 
not right, go up higher to the spring-head ; for always the 
nearer to the spring, the more pure and clear is the water. 
Fetch then thy doctrine from afar, if thou canst not have 
it good nearer hand. Job 36 : 3. Thy life lies at stake ; 
the counterfeit of things is dangerous ; every body that is 
aware, is afraid thereof. Now a counterfeit here is most 
* Story of Bel and the dragon in the Apochrypha. 



94 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

dangerous, is most destructive ; wherefore take heed how 
you hear what you hear ; for, as men say of the fish, by 
your color it will be seen what waters you swim in. Where- 
fore look you well to yourselves. 



The grace of God is called a river, to show that it is only 
suited to those who are capable of living therein. Water, 
though it is that which every creature desireth, yet is not 
an element in which every creature can live. Who is it that 
would not have the benefit of grace, of a throne of grace ? 
But who is it that can live by grace ? even none but those 
whose temper and constitution is suited to grace. Hence, 
as the grace of God is compared to a river, so those that live 
by grace are compared to fish ; for that, as water is that 
element in which the fish liveth, so grace is that which is 
the life of the saint. " And there shall be a very great 
multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither ; 
for they shall be healed, and every thing shall live whither 
the river cometh." Ezek. 47 : 9. Art thou a fish, man — art 
thou a fish ? canst thou live in the water ? canst thou live 
always, and nowhere else but in the water ? is grace thy 
proper element ? The fish dieth if she be taken out of the 
water, unless she be timely put in again ; the saint dieth 
if he be not in this river. Take him from his river, and 
nothing can make him live ; let him have water, water of 
life enough, and nothing can make him die. 

I know that there are some things besides fish that can 
make a shift to live in the water ; but the water is not their 
proper, their only proper element. The frog can live in the 
water, but not in the water only ; the otter can live in the 
water, but not in the water only. Give some men grace 
and the world, grace and sin — admit them to make use of 
their lusts for pleasure, and of grace to remove their guilt, 
and they will make a pretty good shift, as we say ; they 
will finely scrabble on in a profession. But hold them to 
grace only, confine their life to grace, put them into the 



THE INCARNATION OF CHRIST. 

river and let them have nothing but river, and they die ; 
the word, and way, and nature of grace, is to them as light 
bread, and their soul can do no other but loathe it, for they 
are not suited and tempered for that element. 



VII. CHRIST. 

THE INCARNATION OF CHRIST. 

The first main design of the life and conversation of 
the Lord Jesus, was that thereby God, the Eternal Majesty, 
according to his promise, might be seen by, and dwell with, 
mortal men. For the Godhead being altogether in its own 
nature invisible, and yet desirous to be seen by and dwell 
with the children of men, therefore was the Son, who is 
the self- same substance with the Father, clothed with or 
tabernacled in our flesh, that in that flesh the nature and 
glory of the Godhead might be seen by and dwell with us. 
" The word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we 
beheld his glory ;" what glory ? " the glory as of the only 
begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." Again, 
" The life" — that is, the life of God in the works and con- 
versation of Christ — " was manifest, and we have seen it 
and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life which 
was with the Father and was manifested unto us." And 
hence he is called the image of the invisible God ; or he by 
whom the invisible God is most perfectly presented to the 
sons of men. 

Did I say before that the God of glory is desirous to be 
seen of us ? Even so also have the pure in heart a desire 
that it should be so. "Lord," say they, "show us the 
Father, and it sufficeth us." And therefore the promise is 
for their comfort, that "they shall see God." But how 
then must they see him ? Why, in the person, and by the 
life and works of Jesus, When Philip, under a mistake, 



96 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thought of seeing God some other way than in and by this 
Lord Jesus Christ, what is the answer ? " Have I been so 
long time with you," saith Christ, " and hast thou not known 
me, Philip ? He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father ; 
and how say est thou then, Show us the Father ? Belie vest 
thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me ? 
The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself; but 
the Father, that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Be- 
lieve me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me ; 
or else believe me for the very work's sake." 

See, here, that both the words and works of the Lord 
Jesus were not to show you, and so to call you back to the 
holiness we had lost, but to give us visions of the perfections, 
that are in the Father. " He hath given us the knowledge 
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." And hence 
it is that the apostle, in that brief collection of the won- 
derful mystery of godliness, places this in the front thereof: 
"God was manifest in the flesh" — was manifested in and 
by the person of Christ, when in the flesh he lived among 
us ; manifest, I say, for this as one reason, that the pure in 
heart, who long after nothing more, might see him. " I 
beseech thee," said Moses, "show me thy glory." "And 
will God indeed dwell with men on the earth ?" saith Sol- 
omon. 



Though Adam be called the image or similitude of God, 
yet but so as that he was the shadow of a more excellent 
image, i^dam was a type of Christ, who only is the ex- 
press image of his Father's person, and the likeness of his 
excellent glory ; for those things that were in Adam were 
but of a human, but of a created substance ; but those 
things that were in Christ, of the same divine and eternal 
excellency with the Father. 

Is Christ then the image of the Father, simply as con- 
sidered of the same divine and eternal excellency with 
liim ? Certainly not ; for an image is doubtless inferior to 



THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST. 97 

that of which it is a figure. Understand, then, that Christ 
is the image of the Father's glory, as born of the Virgin 
Mary, yet so as being very God also : not that his Godhead 
in itself was a shadow or image, but by the acts and doing 
of that man, every act being infinitely perfect by virtue of 
his Godhead, the Father's perfections were made manifest 
to flesh. An image is to be looked upon, and by being 
looked upon, another thing is seen ; so by the person and 
doings of the Lord Jesus, they that indeed could see him 
as he was, discovered the perfection and glory of the Father. 
"Philip, he that hath seen me, hath seen the Father ; and 
how sayest thou then, Show us the Father ?" Neither the 
Father nor the Son can by us at all be seen, as they are 
simply and entirely in their own essence. Therefore the 
person of the Father must be seen by us through the Son, 
as consisting of God and man ; the Godhead, by working 
effectually in the manhood, showing clearly there through 
the infinite perfection and glory of the Father. " The word 
was made flesh, and" then '-'we beheld his glory, the glory 
of the only begotten of his Father" — he being in his per- 
sonal excellencies, infinitely and perfectly, what is recorded 
of his Father, "full of grace and truth." 



When Jesus Christ came down from glory, it was that 
he might bring us to glory ; and that he might be sure not 
to fail, he clothed himself with our nature — as if we should 
take a piece out of the whole lump instead of the whole, 
Heb. 11 : 14— and invested it with that glory which he 
was in before he came down from heaven. Eph. 2:6. 



THE HUMANITY OF CHRIST. 
We perceive love, in that the human nature, the nature 
of man, not of angels, is taken into union with God. 
Whoso could consider this as it is possible for it to be con- 
sidered, would stand amazed till he died with wonder. 
By this very act of the heavenly Wisdom we have an in- 

Riches of Bunyan O 



98 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

conceivable pledge of the love of Christ to man ; for in 
that he hath taken into union with himself our nature, 
what doth it signify but that he intends to take into union 
w r ith himself our persons ? For this very purpose # did he 
assume our nature. Wherefore we read that in the flesh 
he took upon him, in that flesh he died for us, "the just 
for the unjust, that he might bring us to God." 



The psalmist saith of Christ, that " he was fairer than 
the children of men ;" and that, as I believe in his out- 
ward man as well as in his inward part, he was the ex- 
actest, purest, completest, and beautifulest creature that 
ever God made, till his visage was so marred by his perse- 
cutions ; for in all things he had, and shall have the pre- 
eminence. 



THE HUMILIATION OF CHRIST. 
Christ did not only come into our flesh, but also into 
our condition, into the valley and shadow of death, where 
we were, and where we are, as we are sinners. 



That which would have been death to some— the lay- 
ing aside of glory, and the King of princes becoming a 
servant of the meanest form — this he of his own good- 
will was heartily content to do. Wherefore he that was 
once the object of the fear of angels, is now become a little 
creature, a worm, an inferior one, born of a woman, brought 
forth in a stable, laid in a manger, scorned of men, tempted 
of devils, was beholden to his creatures for food, for rai- 
ment, for harbor, and a place wherein to lay his head when 
dead. In a word, he made himself of no reputation, took 
upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the like- 
ness of men, that he might become capable to do this 
kindness for us, to give himself a ransom for us. 

And it is worth your noting, that all the while that he 
was in the world, putting himself upon those other prepa- 



THE GLORY OF CHRIST. 99 

rations which were to be antecedent to his being made a 
sacrifice for us, no man, though he told what he came 
about to many, had, as we read of, a heart once to thank 
him for what he came about. 'No ; they railed on him, 
they degraded him, they called him devil, they said he 
was mad and a deceiver, a blasphemer of God and a rebel 
against the state ; they accused him to the governor ; yea, 
one of his own disciples sold him, another denied him, and 
they all forsook him, and left him to shift for himself in 
the hands of his horrible enemies, who beat him with their 
fists, spat on him, mocked him, crowned him with thorns, 
scourged him, made a gazing-stock of him, and finally, 
hanged him up by the hands and feet alive, and gave him 
vinegar to increase his affliction, when he complained that 
his anguish had made him thirsty. And yet all this could 
not take his heart off the work of our redemption. To die 
he came, die he would, and die he did, before he made his 
return to the Father, for our sins, that we might live 
through him. 



When Christ betook himself to his ministry, he lived 
upon the charity of the people ; when other men went to 
their own houses, Jesus went to the mount of Olives. 



THE GLORY OF CHRIST. 

Christ is rich indeed, both in his blood, resurrection, 
intercession, and all his offices, together with his relations, 
and all his benefits ; all which he bestoweth upon every 
one that receiveth him, and maketh them unspeakably 
wealthy. 

The pearl, as it is rich, and so worth much, so again 
it is beautiful and amiable, even to take the eyes of all 
beholders ; it hath, I say, a very sweet and sparkling light 
and glory in it, enough to take the eye and affect the heart 
of all those that look upon it. And thus is Christ to all 
that come to him. and by him to the Father. "My Beloved 



100 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

is white and ruddy, the chiefest often thousand ; his mouth 
is most sweet, he is altogether lovely." 



THE LOYE OF CHRIST. 
Here is love, that God sent his Son, his darling, his 
Son that never offended, his Son that was always his de- 
light. Herein is love, that he sent him to save sinners; 
to save them by bearing their sins, by bearing their curse, 
by dying their death, and by carrying their sorrows. Here 
is love, in that while we were yet enemies, Christ died for 
us ; yea, here is love, in that while we were yet without 
strength, Christ died for the ungodly. 



Oh, blessed Jesus, how didst thou discover thy love to 
man in thy thus suffering ! And, God the Father, how 
didst thou also declare the purity and exactness of thy jus- 
tice, in that, though it was thine only, holy, innocent, 
harmless, and undefiled Son Jesus, that did take on him 
our nature and represent our persons, answering for our 
sins instead of ourselves ; thou didst so wonderfully pour 
out thy wrath upon him, to the making of him cry out, 
"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" And, 
Lord Jesus, what a glorious conquest hast thou made 
over the enemies of our souls — even wrath, sin, death, hell, 
and devils — in that thou didst wring thyself from under 
the power of them all. And not only so, but hast led them 
captive which would have led us captive ; and also hast 
received for us that glorious and unspeakable inheritance 
that eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it en- 
tered into the heart of man to conceive. 



The great Bringer of the gospel is the good Lord Jesus 
Christ himself; he came and preached peace to them that 
the law proclaimed war against. And to touch a little 
upon the dress in which, by the gospel, Christ presents 



THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 101 

himself unto us, while he offers unto sinful souls his peace 
by the tenders thereof : 

He is set forth as born for us, to save our souls. Isa. 
9:6; Luke 2 : 9-12 ; 1 Cor. 15:3; Gal. 3 : 13 ; Rom. 
10:4; Dan. 9 : 24. 

He is set forth before us as bearing our sins for us, and 
suffering God's wrath for us. 

He is set forth before us as fulfilling the law for us, 
and as bringing everlasting righteousness to us for our 
covering. 

Again, as to the manner of his working out the salva- 
tion of sinners for them, that they might have peace and 
joy, and heaven and glory for ever : 

He is set forth as sweating blood while he was in his 
agony, wrestling with the thoughts of death, while he was 
to suffer for our sins, that he might save the soul. Luke 
22 : 24. 

He is set forth as crying, weeping, and mourning under 
the lashes of justice that he put himself under, and was 
willing to bear for our sins. 

He is set forth as betrayed, apprehended, condemned, 
spit on, scourged, buffeted, mocked, crowned with thorns, 
crucified, pierced with nails and a spear, to save the soul 
from being betrayed by the devil and sin ; to save it from 
being apprehended by justice and condemned by the law ; 
to save it from being spit on in a way of contempt by holi- 
ness ; to save it from being scourged with guilt of sins as 
with scorpions ; to save it from being continually buffeted 
by its own conscience ; to save it from being mocked at by 
God ; to save it from being crowned with ignominy and 
shame for ever ; to save it from dying the second death ; 
to save it from wounds and grief for ever. 

Dost thou understand me, sinful soul ? He wrestled 
with justice, that thou might est have rest ; he wept and 
mourned, that thou might st laugh and rejoice ; he was 
betrayed, that thou mightest go free ; was apprehended, that 



102 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thou mightst escape ; he was condemned, that thou mightst 
be justified, and was killed, that thou mightest live ; he 
wore a crown of thorns, that thou mightest wear a crown 
of glory ; and was nailed to the cross with his arms wide 
open, to show with what freeness all his merits shall he 
bestowed on the coming soul, and how heartily he will 
receive it into his bosom. 

All this he did of mere good-will, and offers the benefit 
thereof unto thee freely. Yea, he comes unto thee in the 
word of the gospel, with the blood running down from his 
head upon his face, with his tears abiding upon his cheeks, 
as with the holes fresh in his hands and his feet, and as 
with the blood still bubbling out of his side, to pray thee 
to accept of the benefit, and to be reconciled to God 
thereby. 



By this we may see his love, in that as a forerunner he 
is gone into heaven to take possession thereof for us ; there 
to make ready and prepare for us our summer-houses, our 
mansions and dwelling-places ; as if we were the lords, 
and he the servant. Oh, this love ! 



Thou Son of the Blessed, what grace was manifest in 
thy condescension ! Grace brought thee down from heaven ; 
grace stripped thee of thy glory ; grace made thee poor 
and despicable ; grace made thee bear such burdens of sin, 
such burdens of sorrow, such burdens of God's curse as are 
unspeakable. 

Son of God, grace was in all thy tears ; grace came 
bubbling out of thy side with thy blood ; grace came forth 
with every word of thy sweet mouth ; grace came out 
where the whip smote thee, where the thorns pricked thee, 
where the nails and spear pierced thee. blessed Son of 
God, here is grace indeed ! unsearchable riches of grace ! 
unthought of riches of grace ! grace to make angels won- 
der, grace to make sinners happy, grace to astonish devils ! 



THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 103 

And what will become of them that trample under foot 
this Son of God ? 



Christ is the desire of nations, the joy of angels, the 
delight of the Father. What solace then must that soul 
be filled with, that hath the possession of him to all 
eternity ! 



Who can tell how many heart-pleasing thoughts Christ 
had of us before the world began ? Who can tell how 
much he then was delighted in that being we had in his 
affections, as also in the consideration of our beings, believ- 
ings, and being with him afterwards ? 



Christ was never so joyful in all his life, that we read 
of, as when his sufferings grew near ; then he takes the 
sacrament of his body and blood into his own hands, and 
with thanksgiving bestows it among his disciples ; then he 
sings a hymn, then he rejoices, then he comes with a " Lo, 
I come." the heart, the great heart that Jesus had for 
us to do us good ! He did it with all the desire of his soul. 



When a man shall not only design me a purse of gold, 
but shall venture his life to bring it to me, this is grace 
indeed. But, alas, what are a thousand such short com- 
parisons to the unsearchable love of Christ? 



Christ Jesus has bags of mercy that were never yet 
broken up or unsealed. Hence it is said, he has goodness 
laid up ; things reserved in heaven for his. And if he 
breaks up one of these bags, who can tell what he can do ? 



It is not exaltation, nor a crown, nor a kingdom, nor a 
throne that shall make Christ neglect his poor ones on 
earth ; yea, because he is exalted and on the throne, there- 
fore it is that such a river of life, with its golden streams, 



104 RICHES OF BUNYAN, 

proceeds with us. And it shall proceed, to be far higher 
than ever were the swellings of Jordan. Rev. 22 : 1. 



How the brave sun doth, peep up from beneath. 
Shows us his golden face, doth on us breathe; 
Yea, he doth compass us around with glories 
Whilst he ascends up to his highest stories, 
Where he Ms banner over us displays 
And gives us light to see our works and ways. 

Nor are we now, as at the peep of light, 
To question is it day or is it night; 
The night is gone, the shadow 's fled away, 
And now we are most certain that 'tis day. 

And thus it is when Jesus shows his face, 
And doth assure us of his love and grace. 



This makes Christ precious, if I consider how he did 
deliver me : it was, 1, with his life, his blood ; it cost him 
tears, groans, agony, separation from God ; to do it, he 
endured his Father's wrath, bare his Father's curse, and 
died thousands of deaths at once. 

2. He did this while I was his enemy, without my de- 
sires, without my knowledge, without my deserts ; he did 
it unawares to me. 

3. He did it freely, cheerfully, yea, he longed to die for 
me ; yea, heaven would not hold him for the love he had 
to my salvation, which also he has effectually accomplish- 
ed for me at Jerusalem. 

Honorable Jesus ! precious Jesus ! loving Jesus ! Jona- 
than's kindness captivated David, and made him precious 
in his eyes for ever. " I am distressed for thee, my brother 
Jonathan," said he ; " very pleasant hast thou been to me ; 
thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women." 
Why, what had Jonathan done ? Oh, he had delivered 
David from the wrath of Saul. But how much more 
should He be precious to me, who hath saved me from 
death and hell — who hath delivered me from the wrath of 



THE LOVE OF CHRIST. 105 

God ? " The love of Christ constraineth us." Nothing 
will so edge the spirit of a Christian as, " Thou wast slain, 
and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood." This makes 
the heavens themselves ring with joy and shouting. 



THE DAY, BEFORE THE SUN-RISING. 

But all this while, where 's he whose golden rays 
Drive night away, and beautify our days ? 
Where ? s he whose goodly face doth warm and heal, 
And show us what the darksome nights conceal ? 
Where 's he that thaws our ice, drives cold away? 
Let 's have him, or we care not for the day. 

Thus 'tis with those who are possessed of grace; 

There 's naught to them like the Redeemer's face. 



Oh thou loving one, Oh thou blessed one, thou de- 
servest to have me ; thou hast bought me ; thou deservest 
to have me all ; thou hast paid for me ten thousand times 
more than I am worth ! 



you that are upon this march [to hell,] I beseech you, 
consider a little. What, shall Christ become a servant 
for you, and will you be drudges for the devil ? Shall 
Christ covenant with G-od for the salvation of sinners, and 
shall sinners covenant with hell, death, and the devil, for 
the damnation of their souls ? Shall Christ come down 
from heaven to earth to declare this to sinners ; and shall 
sinners stop their ears against' these good tidings? Will 
you not hear the errand of Christ, although he telleth you 
tidings of peace and salvation ? How if he had come, 
having taken a command from his Father to damn you 
and to send you to dwell with devils in hell ? Sinners, 
hear this message, John 3 : 16, 17, etc. ; he speaketh no 
harm, his words are eternal life ; all men that give ear 
unto them have eternal advantage by them — advantage, I 
say, that never hath an end. 

Besides, do but consider these two things ; they may 
have some sway upon thy soul. 

5* 



106 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

1. When he came on his message, he came with tears 
in his eyes, and did even weepingly tender the terms of 
reconciliation to them — I say, with tears in his eyes. And 
when he came near the city with the message of peace, 
beholding the hardness of their hearts, he wept over it, 
and took up a lamentation over it, because he saw they 
rejected his mercy, which was tidings of peace. I say, 
wilt thou then slight a weeping Jesus, one that so loveth 
the soul that rather than he will lose thee, he will with 
tears persuade thee ? 

2. Not only so, but also when he came, he came all on 
a gore of blood, to proffer mercy to thee, to show thee still 
how dearly he did love thee; as if he had said, " Sinner, 
here is mercy for thee ; but behold my bloody sweat, my 
bloody wounds, my accursed death ; behold, and see what 
danger I have gone through to come unto thy soul. I am 
come indeed unto thee, and do bring thee tidings of salva- 
tion, but it cost me my heart's blood before I could come 
at thee, to give thee the fruits of my everlasting love." 



THE RIG-HTEOUSNESS OF CHRIST. 

Many there are who, in the day of grace and mercy, 
despise those things which are indeed the birthright to 
heaven, who yet when the declining days appear will cry 
as loud as Esau, " Lord, Lord, open to us ;" but then, as 
Isaac would not repent, no more will God the Father, but 
will say, " I have blessed these, yea, and they shall be 
blessed ; but as for you, Depart, you are workers of in- 
iquity." 

When I had thus considered these scriptures and found 
that thus to understand them was net against, but accord- 
ing to the Scriptures, this still added further to my encour- 
agement and comfort, and also gave a great blow to that 
objection — to wit, that the Scriptures could not agree in 
the salvation of my soul. 

And now remained only the hinder part of the tern- 



THE RIG-HTE0U3NESS OF CHRIST. 107 

pest, for the thunder was gone beyond me, only some drops 
did still remain that now and then would fall upon me ; 
but because my former frights and anguish were very sore 
and deep, therefore it oft befell me still, as it befalleth those 
that have been seared with the fire, I thought every voice 
was, " Fire, fire !" Every little touch would hurt my ten- 
der conscience 

But one day, as I was passing into the field, and that 
too with some dashes on my conscience, fearing lest yet ail 
was not right, suddenly this sentence fell upon my soul : 
" Thy righteousness is in heaven ;" and methought withal 
I saw with the eyes of my soul Jesus Christ at G-od's right 
hand — there, I say, as my righteousness ; so that wherever 
I was, or whatever I was doing, God could not say to me, 
he wanted my righteousness, for that was just before him. 
I also saw, moreover, that it was not my good frame of 
heart that made my righteousness better, nor yet my bad 
frame that made my righteousness worse ; for my right- 
eousness was Jesus Christ himself, " the same yesterday, 
to-day, and for ever." 

Now did my chains fall off my legs indeed ; I was 
loosed from my afflictions and irons ; my temptations also 
fled away ; so that from that time those dreadful scrip- 
tures* of God left off to trouble me : now went I also home 
rejoicing, for the grace and love of God. So when I came 
home, I looked to see if I could find that sentence, " Thy 
righteousness is in heaven," but could not find such a say- 
ing ; wherefore my heart began to sink again, only that 
was brought to my remembrance, "He is made unto us of 
God wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption." 
By this word I saw the other sentence true. 

For by this scripture I saw that the man Christ Jesus, 

as he is distinct from us as touching his bodily presence, 

so he is our righteousness and sanctification before God. 

Here, therefore, I lived for some time very sweetly at peace 

* Numb. 15 : 30 ; Jer. 7:16; Heb. 10 : 31 : 12 : 17. 



108 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

with God through Christ. Oh, methought, Christ ! Christ ! 
there was nothing but Christ that was before my eyes. I 
was now not only for looking upon this and the other bene- 
fits of Christ apart, as of his blood, burial, or resurrection, 
but considering him as a whole Christ — as he in whom all 
these, and all his other virtues, relations, offices, and oper- 
ations met together, and that he sat on the right hand of 
God in heaven. 

Further, the Lord did also lead me into the mystery of 
the union with the Son of God — that I was joined to him, 
and that I was flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone ; and 
now was that a sweet word to me in Eph. 5 : 30. By this 
also was my faith in him as my righteousness, the more 
confirmed in me ; for if he and I were one, then his right- 
eousness was mine, his merits mine, his victory also mine. 
Now, I could see myself in heaven and earth at once : in 
heaven, by my Christ, by my Head, by my Righteousness 
and Life, though on earth by body or person. 



Let divine and infinite justice turn itself which way it 
will, it finds One that can tell how to match it. For if it 
say, "I will require the satisfaction of man," there is a 
man to satisfy its cry ; and if it say, " But I am an infinite 
God, and must and will have an infinite satisfaction," here 
is One also that is infinite, even "fellow" with God; fellow 
in his essence and being ; fellow in his power and strength ; 
fellow in his wisdom ; fellow in his mercy and grace, to- 
gether with the rest of the attributes of God. So that, let 
justice turn itself which way it will, here is a complete 
person and a complete satisfaction. 



" The law," sayst thou, " must be obeyed." I answer, 
" Christ Jesus has done that in his own person, and justi- 
fied me thereby ; and for my part, I will not labor now to 
fulfil the law for justification, lest I should undervalue the 
merits of the man Christ Jesus, and what he has done 



CHRIST A COMPLETE SAVIOUR. 109 

without me ; and yet will I labor to fulfil, if it were possi- 
ble, ten thousand laws, if there were so many. And Oh, 
let it be out of love to my sweet Lord Jesus ; for the love 
of Christ constraineth me." 



Though no man can be justified by the works of the 
law, yet unless the righteousness and holiness by which 
they attempt to enter into this kingdom be justified by the 
law, it is in vain once to think of entering in at this strait 
gate. Now, the law justifieth not, but upon the account 
of Christ's righteousness ; if therefore thou be not indeed 
found in that righteousness, thou wilt find the law lie just 
in the passage into heaven to keep thee out. 



CHRIST A COMPLETE SAVIOUR. 

" This is the Father's will which hath sent me, that 
of all which he hath given me, I should lose nothing, but 
should raise it up again at the last day." John 6 : 39. 

The Father therefore, in giving them to him to save 
them, must needs declare unto us the following things : 

1 . That he is able to answer this design of God to save 
them to the uttermost sin, the uttermost temptation. Hence 
he is said to "lay help on one that is mighty," mighty to 
save. Sin is strong, Satan is also strong, death and the 
grave are strong, and so is the curse of the law ; therefore 
it follows, that this Jesus must needs be by God the Father 
accounted almighty, in that he hath given his elect to him 
to save them from these, and that in despite of all their 
force and power. And he gave us testimony of this his 
might, when he was employed in that part of our deliver- 
ance that called for a declaration of it. He abolished 
death ; he destroyed him that had the power of death ; he 
was the destruction of the grave ; he hath finished sin, 
and made an end of it ; he hath vanquished the curse of 
the law, nailed it to his cross, triumphed over them upon 
his cross, and made a show of these things openly. Yea, 



110 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

and even now, as a sign of his triumph and conquest, he 
is alive from the dead, and hath the keys of death and hell 
in his own keeping. 

2. The Father's giving them to him to save them, de- 
clares unto us that he is and will he faithful in his office 
of Mediator, and that therefore they shall be secured from 
the fruit and wages of their sins, which is eternal damna- 
tion. And of this the Son hath already given a proof; for 
when the time was come that his blood was by divine jus- 
tice required for their redemption, washing, and cleansing, 
he as freely poured it out of his heart as if it had been 
water out of a vessel ; not sticking to part with his own life, 
that the life which was laid up for his people in heaven 
might not fail to be bestowed upon them. 

3. The Father's giving of them to him to save them, 
declares that he is and will be gentle and patient towards 
them under all their provocations and miscarriages. It is 
not to be imagined, the trials and provocations that the 
Son of God hath all along had with these people that have 
been given to him to save. Indeed, he is said to be a tried 
stone; for he has been tried not only by the devil, guilt 
of sin, death, and the curse of the law, but also by his peo- 
ple's ignorance, unruliness, falls into sin, and declining to 
errors in life and doctrine. Were we but capable of seeing 
how this Lord Jesus has been tried, even by his people, 
ever since there was one of them in the world, we should 
be amazed at his patience and gentle carriages to them. 
It is said indeed, " The Lord is very pitiful, slow to anger, 
and of great mercy." And indeed, if he had not been so, 
he could never have endured their manners as he has done, 
from Adam hitherto. Therefore are his pity and bowels 
towards his church preferred above the pity and bowels of 
a mother towards her child. "Can a woman forget her 
sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the 
son of her womb ? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not 
forget thee, saith the Lord." 



CHRIST A COMPLETE SAVIOUR. HI 

God did once give Moses, as Christ's servant, a handful 
of his people to carry them in his bosom, but no further 
than from Egypt to Canaan ; and this Moses, as is said of 
him by the Holy Ghost, was the meekest man that was 
then to be found upon the earth. God gave them to Moses 
that he might carry them in his bosom, that he might 
show gentleness and patience towards them, under all the 
provocations wherewith they would provoke him from that 
time till he had brought them to their land. But he fail- 
ed in the work ; he could not exercise it, because he had 
not that sufficiency of patience towards them. But now 
it is said of the person speaking in the text, that " he 
shall gather his lambs with his arm, shall carry them in 
his bosom, and shall gently lead them that are with 
young." 

4. The Father's giving them to him to save them, de- 
clares that he hath a sufficiency of ivisdom to wage with 
all those difficulties that would attend him in his bringing 
his sons and daughters unto glory. He hath made him 
to us to be wisdom ; yea, he is called Wisdom itself. And 
God saith, moreover, that he " shall deal prudently." And 
indeed, he that shall take upon him to be the Saviour of 
the people, had need be wise, because their adversaries are 
subtle above any. Here they are to encounter the ser- 
pent, who for his subtlety outwitted our father and moth- 
er when their wisdom was at highest. But if we talk of 
wisdom, our Jesus is wise, wiser than Solomon, wiser than 
all men, wiser than all angels; he is even "the wisdom 
of God." And hence it is that he turneth sins, tempta- 
tions, persecutions, falls, and all things, for good unto his 
people. 



I do not doubt but there is virtue enough in the blood 
of Christ, would God Almighty so apply it, to save the 
souls of the whole world. But it is the blood of Christ, 
his own blood, and he may do what he will with his own. 



112 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

It is also the blood of God, and he also may restrain its 
merits, or apply it as he sees good. But the coming soul, 
he shall find and feel the virtue thereof, even the soul that 
comes to God by Christ, for he is the man concerned in its 
worth. 



There is sufficiency of merit in Christ to save a thou- 
sand times as many more as are like to be saved by him. 



No man needs at all to go about to come at life and 
peace and rest : let him come directly from sin to grace, 
from Satan to Jesus Christ. 



The cross, it stands and hath stood from the beginning 
as a way-mark to the kingdom of heaven. Art thou inquir- 
ing the way to heaven ? Why, I tell thee Christ is the 
way ; into him thou must get, into his righteousness to be 
justified ; and if thou art in him, thou wilt presently see 
the cross : thou must go close by it, thou must touch it, 
nay, thou must take it up, or else thou wilt quickly go 
out of the way that leads to heaven, and turn up some of 
those crooked lanes that lead down to the chambers of 
death. 



Many there be that begin with grace and end with 
works, and think that is the only way. Indeed, works will 
save from temporal punishments, when their imperfections 
are purged from them by the intercession of Christ ; but to 
be saved and brought to glory, to be carried through this 
dangerous world from my first moving after Christ until I 
set foot within the gates of paradise, this is the work of 
my Mediator, of my High-priest and Intercessor. It is he 
that fetches us again when we are run away; it is he that 
lifts us up when the devil and sin have thrown us down ; 
it is he that quickens us when we grow cold ; it is he that 
comforts us when we despair ; it is he that obtains fresh 



CHRIST A COMPLETE SAVIOUR. 113 

pardon when we have contracted sin, and that purges our 
consciences when they are laden with guilt. I know that 
rewards do wait for them in heaven, that believe in Christ, 
and shall do well on earth ; but this is not a reward of 
merit, but of grace. We are saved by Christ, brought to 
glory by Christ, and all our works are no other ways 
made acceptable to God but by the person and personal 
excellencies and works of Christ ; therefore, whatever the 
jewels are, and the bracelets and the pearls, that thou shalt 
be adorned with as a reward of 'service done for G-od in the 
world, for them thou must thank Christ, and before all 
confess that he was the meritorious cause thereof. 



Christ must be helpful to thee every way, or he will 
be helpful to thee no way; thou must enter in by every 
whit of Christ, or thou shalt enter in by never a whit of 
him. "Wherefore look not to have him thy Saviour, if thou 
take him not for King and Prophet ; nay, thou shalt not 
have him in any one, if thou dost not take him in every 
one of these. 



Christ shall bear the glory of our salvation from sin, 
preservation in the midst of all temptations, and of our 
going to glory ; also he shall bear the glory of our labor in 
the gospel, of our gifts and abilities, of making our work 
and labor effectual to the saving of sinners, that in all 
things he might have the preeminence. 



If you have indeed laid Christ, God-man, for your foun- 
dation, then you do lay the hope of your felicity and joy on 
this, that the Son of Mary is now absent from his children 
in his person and humanity, making intercession for them 
and for thee in the presence of his Father. 2 Cor. 5 : 6. 

And the reason that thou canst rejoice hereat is, be- 
cause thou hast not only heard of it with thine ear, but 
dost enjoy the sweet hope and faith of it in thy heart; 



114 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

which hope and faith are begotten by the Spirit of Christ, 
which Spirit dwelleth in thee if thou be a believer, and 
showeth those things to thee to be the only things. 

And God having shown thee these things thus within 
thee, by the Spirit that dwells in thee, thou hast mighty 
encouragement to hope for the glory that shall be revealed 
at the coming again of the man Christ Jesus ; of which 
glory thou hast also greater ground to hope for a share, 
because that Spirit which alone is able to discover to thee 
the truth of these things, is given to thee of God as the 
first fruits of that glory which is hereafter to be revealed— 
being obtained for thee by the man Christ Jesus' death 
on Calvary, and by his blood that was shed there, together 
with his resurrection from the dead out of the grave where 
they had laid him. 

Also, thou believest that he is gone away from thee in 
the same body which was hanged on the cross, to take 
possession of that glory which thou, through his obedience, 
shalt at his the very same man's return from heaven the 
second time, have bestowed upon thee, he having all this 
while prepared and preserved it for thee ; as he saith him- 
self, "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and 
prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive 
you to myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." 

Again, if thou hast laid Christ, God-man, for thy foun- 
dation, though thou hast the Spirit of this man Christ 
within thee, yet thou dost not look that justification should 
be wrought out for thee by that Spirit of Christ that dwells 
within thee ; for thou knowest that salvation is already 
obtained for thee by the man Christ Jesus without thee, 
and is witnessed to thee by his Spirit which dwells within 
thee. And thus much doth this man Christ Jesus testify 
unto us, where he says, " He shall glorify me," saith the 
Son of Mary. But how ? Why, " he shall take of mine" — 
what I have done and am doing in the presence of the 
Father — If and shall show it unto you." John 16 : 14. 



CHRIST NOT A SAVIOUR BY EXAMPLE. 115 

CHRIST NOT A SAVIOUR BY HIS EXAMPLE. 

A third thing you mention is, that " the Son of God 
taught men their duty by his own example, and did him- 
self perform what he required of them ; and that himself 
did tread before us every step of that which he hath told 
us leadeth to eternal life." 

Answer. Now we are come to the point, namely, 
that "the way to eternal life is, first of all, to take Christ 
for our example, treading his steps." And the reason, if 
it be true, is weighty ; for " he hath trod every step before 
us which he hath told us leads to eternal life." 

" Every step." Therefore he went to heaven by virtue 
of an imputative righteousness ; for this is one of our steps 
thither. 

"Every step." Then he must go thither by faith in 
his own blood for pardon of sin ; for this is another of our 
steps thither. 

" Every step." Then he must go thither by virtue of 
his own intercession at the right hand of God before he 
came thither ; for this is one of our steps thither. 

" Every step." Then he must come to God and ask 
mercy for some great wickedness which he had committed ; 
for this is also one of our steps thither. 

But again, we will consider it the other way. 

"Every step." Then we cannot come to heaven be- 
fore we first be made accursed of God ; for so was he before 
he came thither. 

" Every step." Then we must first make our body 
and soul an offering for the sin of others ; for this did he 
before he came thither. 

"Every step." Then we must go to heaven for the 
sake of our own righteousness ; for that was one of his 
steps thither. 

0, sir, what will thy gallant, generous mind do here ? 
Indeed, you talk of his being an expiatory sacrifice for us, 
but you put no more trust to that than to baptism or the 



116 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Lord's supper ; counting that with the other two but 
things indifferent in themselves. 

You add again, that "this Son of God being raised 
from the dead and ascended to heaven, is our high-priest 
there." But you talk not at all of his sprinkling the 
mercy-seat with his blood, but clap upon him the hea- 
thens' demons, negotiating the affairs of men with the su- 
preme God, and so wrap up^ with a testification that it is 
needless to enlarge on the point. 

What man that ever had read or assented to the gospel, 
but would have spoken more honorably of Christ than you 
have done ? His sacrifice must be stepped over ; his inter- 
cession is needless to be enlarged upon. But when it fall- 
eth in your way to talk of your human nature, of the dic- 
tates of the first principles of morals within you, and of your 
generous mind to follow it, Oh what need there is now of 
amplifying, enlarging, and pressing it on men's consciences, 
as if that poor heathenish pagan principle was the very 
Spirit of God within us, and as if righteousness done by 
that was that and that only that would or could fling 
heaven's gates off the hinges. 

Yea, a little after you tell us that " the doctrine of 
sending the Holy Ghost was to move and excite us to our 
duty, and to assist, cheer, and comfort us in the perform- 
ance of it;" still meaning our close adhering, by the 
purity of our human nature, to the dictates of the law as 
written in our hearts as men ; which is as false as God is 
true. 

For the Holy Ghost is sent into our hearts, not to 
excite us to a compliance with our old and wind-shaken 
excellencies that came into the world with us, but to' 
write new laws in our hearts, even the law of faith, the 
word of faith and of grace, and the doctrine of remission 
of sins through the blood of the Lamb of God, that holiness 
might flow from thence. 

* That is, dismiss the subject. 



CHRIST A TEACHER. 117 

CHRIST A TEACHER. 

At this time I sat under the ministry of holy Mr. Gif- 
ford. whose doctrine, by God's grace, was much for my 
stability. This man made it much his business to deliver 
the people of God from all those hard and unsound tests 
that by nature we are prone to. He would bid us take 
special heed that we took not up any truth upon trust, as 
from this or that or any other man or men ; but cry might- 
ily to God that he would convince us of the reality thereof, 
and set us down therein by his own Spirit in the holy 
word ; " for," said he, " if you do otherwise, when tempta- 
tion comes strongly upon you, you not having received 
them with evidence from heaven, will find you want that 
help and strength now to resist, that once you thought you 
had." 

This was as seasonable to my soul as the former and 
latter rain in their season, for I had found, and that by 
sad experience, the truth of these his words ; for I had felt 
that no man, especially when tempted by the devil, " can 
say that Jesus Christ is Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." 

But now, how was my soul led from truth to truth 
by God ; even from the birth and cradle of the Son of God, 
to his ascension and second coming from heaven to judge 
the world. 

Once I was troubled to know whether the Lord Jesus 
was a man as well as God, and God as well as man ; and 
truly, in those days, let men say what they would, unless 
I had it with evidence from heaven, all was nothing to me. 
"Well, I was much troubled about this point, and could not" 
tell how to be resolved ; at last, that in Rev. 5 : 6 came 
into my mind : "And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the 
throne, and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the eld- 
ers, stood a Lamb." " In the midst of the throne " — thought 
I, there is the godhead; "in the midst of the elders" — 
there is his manhood : but Oh, methought this did glister ; 
it was a goodly touch, and gave me sweet satisfaction. 



118 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

That other scripture also did help me much in this : " Unto 
us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the govern- 
ment shall he upon his shoulders ; and his name shall he 
called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the ever- 
lasting Father, the Prince of Peace." 

friends, cry to God to reveal Jesus Christ unto you ; 
there is none teacheth like him. 

It would he long to tell you in particular how God did 
set me down in all the things of Christ, and how he did, 
that he might do so, lead me into his words ; yea, and also 
how he did open them unto me, and make them shine he- 
fore me, and cause them to dwell with me, talk with me, 
and comfort me over and over, both of his own being and 
the being of his Son and Spirit, and word and gospel. 



THE DEATH OF CHRIST. 
We never read that Jesus Christ was more cheerful in 
all his life on earth, than when he was going to lay down 
his life for his enemies ; now he thanked God, now he sang. 



Christ died and endured the wages of sin, and that 
without an intercessor, without one between God and him. 
He grappled immediately with the eternal justice of God, 
who inflicted on him death, the wages of sin ; there was no 
man to hold off the hand of God ; justice had his full blow 
at him, and made him a curse for sin. 

A second thing that demonstrates that Christ died the 
cursed death for sin, is the frame of spirit that he was in 
at the time he was to be taken. Never was poor mortal 
so beset with the apprehensions of approaching death as 
was this Lord Jesus Christ ; amazement beyond measure, 
sorrow that exceeded seized upon his soul : " My soul is 
exceeding sorrowful, even unto death. And he began to 
be sore amazed, and to be very heavy." Add to this that 
Jesus Christ was better able to grapple with death, even 
&k>ne, than the whole world joined all together. 1. He 



THE DEATH OF CHRIST. 119 

was anointed with the Spirit without measure. 2. He had 
all grace perfect in him. 3. Never had any so much of 
his Father's love as he. 4. Never one so harmless and 
without sin as he, and consequently never man had so 
good a conscience as he. 5. Never one prepared such a 
stock of good works to bear him company at the hour of 
death as he. 6. Never one had greater assurance of being 
with the Father eternally in the heavens than he. And 
yet, behold, when he comes to die, how weak is he, how 
amazed at death, how heavy, how exceeding sorrowful ! 
and, I say, no cause assigned but the approach of death. 

Alas, how often is it seen that we poor sinners can 
laugh at destruction when it cometh; yea, and rejoice 
exceedingly when we find the grave, looking upon death 
as a part of our portion, yea, as that which will be a 
means of our present relief and help. 1 Cor. 3 : 22. 

This Jesus could not do, considered as dying for our 
sin ; but the nearer death, the more heavy and oppressed 
with the thoughts of the revenging hand of God ; where- 
fore he falls into an agony and sweats — not after the com- 
mon rate, as we do when death is severing body and soul : 
"His sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling 
down to the ground." 

What should be the reason but that death assaulted 
him with his sting ? If Jesus Christ had been to die for 
his virtues only, doubtless he would have borne it lightly. 

How have the martyrs despised death, having peace 
with God by Jesus Christ, scorning the most cruel torments 
that men and hell could devise and invent ! but Jesus 
Christ could not do so, as he was a sacrifice for sin ; he 
died for us, he was made a curse for us. 0, my brethren, 
Christ died many deaths at once ; he made his grave with 
the wicked, and with the rich in his death. 

It was because of sin, the sin that was put into the 
death he died, and the curse of God that was due to sin, 
that that death was so bitter to Jesus Christ ; it is Christ 



120 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

that died. The apostle speaks as if never any died but 
Christ ; nor indeed did there, so wonderful a dearth as he. 
Death, considered simply as a deprivation of natural life, 
could not have these effects in a person personally more 
righteous than an angel ; yea, even carnal wicked men, 
not awakened in their conscience, how securely they can 
die ! It must therefore be concluded that the sorrows and 
agony of Jesus Christ came from a higher cause, even from 
the curse of God that was now approaching for sin. 

At last they condemn him to death, even to the death 
of the cross, where they hang him up by wounds made 
through his hands and feet, between the earth and the 
heavens ; where he hanged for the space of six hours. No 
God yet appears for his help. While he hangs there some 
rail at him, others wag their heads, others tauntingly say, 
" He saved others, himself he cannot save.' 5 Some divide 
his raiment, casting lots for his raiment before his face ; 
others mockingly bid him come down from the cross ; and 
when he desires succor, they give him vinegar to drink. 
No God yet appears for his help. 

Now the earth quakes, the rocks are rent, the sun be- 
comes black, and Jesus still cries out, that he was forsaken 
of God ; and presently boweth his head and dies. 

And for all this there is no cause assigned from God, 
but sin. " He was wounded for our transgressions, he was 
bruised for our iniquities ; the chastisement of our peace 
was upon him, and by his stripes we are healed." 



THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. 

You shall have the testimony of the holy angels by the 
Scriptures, to the resurrection of the Son of God. And first, 
in Mark 16 : 3-7, the words are these : 

" And they said among themselves, Who shall roll away 
the stone ?" They had a good mind to see their Lord; but 
they could not, as they thought, get away the stone which 
covered the mouth of the sepulchre. " And when they 



RESURRECTION OF CHRIST. 121 

had looked," that is, towards the sepulchre, " they saw the 
stone rolled away, for it was great ; and entering into the 
sepulchre, they saw a young man," that is, an angel, " sit- 
ting on the right side, clothed with a long white garment ; 
and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not 
afraid," you have no cause for it ; " you seek Jesus of Naz- 
areth, who was crucified ; he is not here, he is risen : behold 
the place where they laid him." What scripture can be 
plainer spoken than this ? Here is an angel of the Lord 
ready to satisfy the disciples of Jesus that he was risen from 
the dead. And lest they should think it was not the right 
Jesus he spoke of, Yes, saith he, it is the same Jesus that 
you mean; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, do you not? Why, 
"he is risen, he is not here." But do you speak seriously 
and in good earnest ? Yea, surely ; if you will not believe 
me, "behold the place where they laid him." This scrip- 
ture is very clear to our purpose. 

But again, in Matt. 28 : 3-7, there is an angel as before 
bearing witness of the resurrection of Jesus. " His coun- 
tenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow. 
And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as 
dead men. And the angel answered and said unto them," 
the women who came to seek Jesus, " Fear you not ; but let 
them that seek to keep the Lord in his grave fear if they 
will, for you have no ground of fear who seek the Jesus 
that was crucified : he is not here, he is risen ; he can- 
not be here in body, and risen too : if you will not believe 
me, come, see where the Lord lay. And go quickly and 
tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead ; and be- 
hold, he goeth before you into Galilee, there shall you see 
him." But shall we be sure of it ? " Yea," saith the an- 
gel ; " lo, it is I that have told you." See how plainly this 
scripture also doth testify of Christ's resurrection. " Here," 
saith the angel, "you seek a Saviour, and none will con- 
tent you but he, even the same that was crucified : well, 
you shall have him, but he is not here." Why, where is 

Riches of" Bunyan U 



122 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

he then ? " He is risen from the dead." But are you sure 
it is the same that we look for? " Yea, it is the same that 
was crucified." But where shall we find him? Why, 
" he goeth before you into Galilee, where he used to be in 
his lifetime, before he was crucified. And that you might 
be sure of it there to find him, know that he is an angel of 
God that has told you." 



THE CALORIFICATION OF CHRIST. 

For God to adorn his Son with all this glory in his 
ascension, thus to make him ride conqueror up into the 
clouds, thus to go up with sound of trumpet, with shout of 
angels and with songs of praises, and let me add, to be ac- 
companied also with those that rose from the dead after his 
resurrection, who were the very price of his blood-— this 
does greatly demonstrate that Jesus Christ, by what he 
has done has paid a full price to God for the souls of sin- 
ners, and obtained eternal redemption for them : he had 
not else rode thus in triumph to heaven. 

Consider those glorious circumstances that accompany 
his approach to the gates of the everlasting habitation. 
The everlasting gates are set, yea, bid stand open : e * Be ye 
open, ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come 
in." The King of glory is Jesus Christ, and the words are 
a prophecy of his glorious ascending into the heavens, when 
he went up as the High-priest of the church, to carry the 
price of his blood into the holiest of all. 



THE OFFICES OF CHRIST. 
Christ as a Saviour is not divided. He that hath him 
not in all, shall have him in none at all of his offices in a 
saving manner. 



CHRIST AN INTERCESSOR. 
Study the priesthood, the high-priesthood of Jesus Christ, 
both the first and second part of it. The first part was that 



CHRIST AN INTERCESSOR. 123 

when he offered up himself without the gate, when he bore 
our sins in his own body on the tree. 

The second part is that which he executes there whith- 
er he is now gone, even into heaven itself, where the throne 
of grace is. I say, study what Christ has done and is do- 
ing. Oh, what is he doing now ? He is sprinkling his 
blood, with his priestly robes on, before the throne of grace. 
That is too little thought on by the saints of God : " We 
have such a High-priest, who is set down on the right 
hand of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanc- 
tuary and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched 
and not man.' 5 Busy thyself, fellow- Christian, about this 
blessed office of Christ. It is full of good, it is full of sweet, 
it is full of heaven, it is full of relief and succor for the 
tempted and dejected. 



The priestly office of Christ is the first and great thing 
that is presented to us in the gospel ; namely, how he died 
for our sins, and gave himself to the cross, that the bless- 
ing of Abraham might come upon us through him. But 
now because this priestly office of his is divided into two 
parts, and because one of them, to wit, this of his inter- 
cession, is to be accomplished for us within the veil, there- 
fore — as we say among men, out of sight, out of mind — he 
is too much as to this forgotten by us. We satisfy our- 
selves with the slaying of the sacrifice ; we look not after 
our Aaron as he goes into the holiest, there to sprinkle the 
mercy-seat with blood upon our account. 

But since his dying is his laying down his price, and 
his intercession the urging and managing the worthiness of 
it in the presence of God against Satan, there is glory to 
be found therein, and we should look after him into the 
holy place. The second part of the work of the high- 
priests under the law, had great glory and sanctity put 
upon it. Forasmuch as the holy garments were provided 
for him to officiate in within the veil, also it was there that 



124 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

the altar stood on which he offered incense. Also there 
were the mercy-seat and the cherubim of glory, which were 
figures of the angels, that love to he continually looking 
and prying into the management of this second part of the 
priesthood of Christ in the presence of God. For although 
themselves are not the persons so immediately concerned 
therein as we, yet the management of it, I say, is with so 
much grace and glory, and wisdom and effectualness, that 
it is a heaven to the angels to see it. 0, to enjoy the odor- 
ous scent and sweet memorial, the heart-refreshing perfumes 
that ascend continually from the mercy-seat to the throne 
where God is, and also to behold how effectual it is to the 
end for which it is designed, is glorious ; and he that is not 
somewhat let into this by the grace of God, there is a great 
thing lacking to his faith, and he misseth of many a sweet 
bit that he might otherwise enjoy. Wherefore, I say, be 
exhorted to the study of this part of Christ's work in the 
managing of our salvation for us. 



They who are justified by the blood of Christ, should 
still look to him for the remaining part of their salvation ; 
and let them look for it with confidence, for it is in a faith- 
ful hand. And for thy encouragement to look and hope for 
the completing of thy salvation in glory, let me present 
thee with a few things. 

1. The hardest or worst part of the work of thy Sav- 
iour is over : his bloody work, his bearing thy sin and 
curse, his loss of the light of his Father's face for a time. 
His dying upon the cursed tree, that was the worst, the 
sorest, the hardest, and most difficult part of the work of 
redemption ; and yet this he did willingly, cheerfully, and 
without thy desires; yea, this he did, as considering those 
for whom he did it in a state of rebellion and enmity 
to him. 

2. Consider also that he has made a beginning with 
thy soul to reconcile thee to God, and to that end has be- 



CHRIST AN INTERCESSOR. 125 

stowed his justice upon thee, put his Spirit within thee, and 
begun to make the unwieldable mountain and rock, thy 
heart, to turn towards him and desire after him, to believe 
in him and rejoice in him. 

3. Consider also that some comfortable pledges of his 
love thou hast already received ; namely, as to feel the 
sweetness of his love, as to see the light of his counte- 
nance, as to be made to know his power in raising thee 
when thou wast down, and how he has made thee to stand 
while hell has been pushing at thee utterly to overthrow 
thee. 

4. Thou mayst consider also, that what remains behind 
of the work of thy salvation in his hands, as it is the most 
easy part, is so the most comfortable, and that part which 
will more immediately issue in his glory ; and therefore he 
will mind it. 

5. That which is behind is also more safe in his hand 
than if it was in thine own. He is wise, he is powerful, he 
is faithful, and therefore will manage that part that is 
lacking to our salvation well, until he has completed it. 
It is his love to thee has made him that he putteth no trust 
in thee : he knows that he can himself bring thee to his 
kingdom most surely, and therefore has not left that work 
to thee, no, not any part thereof. 

Live in hope, then, in a lively hope, that since Christ is 
risen from the dead he lives to make intercession for thee ; 
and that thou shalt reap the blessed benefit of this two- 
fold salvation that is wrought and that is working out for 
thee by Jesus Christ our Lord. 



Every believer may say, Christ did not only die and 
rise again, but he ascended into heaven to take possession 
thereof for me, to prepare a place for me. He standeth 
there in the second part of his suretyship to bring me 
safe thither, and to present me in a glorious manner, " not 
having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing." He is there- 



126 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

fore exercising his priestly office for me, pleading the 
perfection of his own righteousness and the virtue of his 
Mood. 

He is there ready to answer the accusations of the law, 
the devil, and sin, for me. Here a believer may through 
faith look the devil in the face and rejoice, saying, " Sa- 
tan, I have a precious Jesus, a soul- comforting Jesus, a 
sin-pardoning Jesus." Here he may listen to the thunders 
of the law, and yet not be daunted. He may say, " law, 
thou mayest roar against sin, but thou canst not reach me ; 
thou mayest curse and condemn, but not my soul ; for I 
have a righteous Jesus, a holy Jesus, a soul-saving Jesus ; 
and he hath delivered me from thy threats, thy curses, and 
thy condemnation. I am brought into another covenant, 
under better promises of life and salvation, freely to com- 
fort me without my merit, through the blood of Jesus ; 
therefore though thou layest my sins to my charge and 
pro vest me guilty, yet so long as Christ hath brought in ev- 
erlasting righteousness and given it to me, I shall not fear 
thy threats. My Christ is all, hath done all, and will de- 
liver me from thine accusations." Thus also thou mayest 
say, when death assaulteth thee, " death, where is thy 
sting ? Thou canst not devour ; I have comfort through 
Jesus Christ, who hath taken thee captive and taken away 
thy strength ; he hath pierced thy heart and let out all thy 
soul- destroying poison. Though I see thee, I am not afraid 
of thee ; though I feel thee, I am not daunted ; for thou 
hast lost thy sting in the side of the Lord Jesus, through 
whom I overcome thee. Also, Satan, though I hear 
thee make a hellish noise, and though thou threaten me 
highly, yet my soul shall triumph over thee so long as 
Christ is alive and can be heard in heaven — so long as he 
hath broken thy head and won the field — so long as thou 
art in prison and canst not have thy desire. When I hear 
thy voice, my thoughts are turned to Christ my Saviour ; I 
hearken to what he will say, for he will speak comfort : he 



CHRIST AN INTERCESSOR. 127 

hath gotten the victory and doth give me the crown, and 
causeth me to triumph through his most glorious conquest. 



" And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne stood 
a Lamb as it had been slain." Rev. 5:6. That in the 
midst of the throne is our sacrifice, with the very marks of 
his death upon him, showing to God that sitteth upon the 
throne the holes of the thorns, of the nails, of the spear ; 
and how he was disfigured with blows and blood when at 
his command he gave himself a ransom for his people ; for 
it cannot be imagined that either the exaltation or glorifica- 
tion of the body of Jesus Christ should make him forget the 
day in which he died the death for our sins ; especially 
since that which puts worth into his w T hole intercession is 
the death he died, and the blood he shed upon the cross for 
our trespasses. 



Since Christ is an intercessor, I infer that believers 
should not rest at the cross for comfort : justification they 
should look for there ; but being justified by his blood, they 
should ascend up after him to his throne. At the cross 
you will see him in his sorrows and humiliations, in his 
tears and blood ; but follow him to where he is now, and 
then you shall see him in his robes, in his priestly robes, 
and with his golden girdle about him. There you shall 
see him wearing the breastplate of judgment, and with all 
your names written upon his heart. Then you shall per- 
ceive that the whole family in heaven and earth is named 
of him, and how he prevails with G-od the Father of mer- 
cies for you. Stand still awhile and listen, yea, enter with 
boldness unto the holiest, and see your Jesus as he now ap- 
pears in the presence of G-od for you ; what work he makes 
against the devil and sin, and death and hell, for you. Ah, 
it is brave following of Jesus Christ to the holiest : the veil 
is rent ; you may see with open face as in a glass the glory 
of the Lord. 



128 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

This then is our High-priest ; this is intercession — these 
the benefits of it. It lies in our part to improve it ; and 
wisdom to do so — that also comes from the mercy-seat or 
throne of grace where he, even our High-priest, ever liveth 
to make intercession for us. To whom be glory for ever 
and ever. 



CHRIST AN ADVOCATE. 

"We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ 
the righteous." This consideration will yield relief, when 
by Satan's abuse of some other of the offices of Christ, thy 
faith is discouraged and made afraid. Christ, as a prophet, 
pronounces many a dreadful sentence against sin ; and 
Christ, as a king, is of power to execute them : and Satan, 
as an enemy, has subtlety enough to abuse both these to 
the almost utter overthrow of the faith of the children of 
God. 

This consideration will help thee to put by that vizor* 
wherewith Christ by Satan is misrepresented to thee, to 
the weakening and affrighting thee. There is nothing 
more common among saints, than thus to be wronged by 
Satan ; for he will labor to fetch fire out of the offices of 
Christ to burn us : so to present him to us with so dreadful 
and so ireful a countenance, that a man in temptation 
and under guilt shall hardly be able to lift up his face to 
God. 

But now, to think really that he is my Advocate, this 
heals all. Put a vizor upon the face of a father, and it 
may perhaps for a while fright the child ; but let the father 
speak, let him speak in his own fatherly dialect to i-he 
child, and the vizor is gone, if not from the father's face, 
yet from the child's mind ; yea, the child, notwithstanding 
that vizor, will adventure to creep into its father's bosom. 

Why, thus it is with the saints when Satan deludes 
and abuses them by disfiguring the countenance of Christ 
* That is, mask. 



CHRIST AN ADVOCATE. 129 

to their view : let them but hear their Lord speak in his 
own natural dialect — and he doth so indeed when we hear 
him speak as an advocate — and their minds are calmed, 
their thoughts settled, their guilt vanished, and their faith 
revived. 



Is Christ Jesus the Lord my advocate with the Father ? 
Then awake, my faith, and shake thyself like a giant ; stir 
up thyself and be not faint : Christ is the advocate of his 
people ; and as for sin, which is one great stumble to thy 
actings, my faith, Christ has not only died for that as 
a sacrifice, nor only carried his sacrifice unto the Father 
into the holiest of all, but is there to manage that offering 
as an advocate, pleading the efficacy and worth thereof 
before God against the devil for us. 



The modest saint is apt to be abashed, to think what a 
troublesome one he is, and what a make-work he has been 
in God's house all his days; and let him be filled with 
holy blushing, but let him not forsake his Advocate. 



If thy foot slippeth, if it slippeth greatly, then know 
thou it will not be long before a bill be in heaven preferred 
against thee by the accuser of the brethren ; wherefore 
then thou must have recourse to Christ as advocate, to 
plead before God thy Judge against the devil thine adver- 
sary for thee. And as to the badness of thy cause, let 
nothing move thee save to humility and self-abasement, 
for Christ is glorified by being concerned for thee ; yea, the 
angels will shout aloud to see him bring thee off. For 
what greater glory can we conceive Christ to obtain as 
advocate, than to bring off his people when they have 
sinned, notwithstanding Satan's so charging of them as 
he doth ? 

He gloried when he was going to the cross to die ; he 
went up with a shout and the sound of a trumpet to make 

6* 



130 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

intercession for us ; and shall we think that by his being 
an advocate he receives no additional glory ? 



Christ, when he pleads as an advocate for his people 
in the presence of God against Satan, can plead those very 
weaknesses of his people for which Satan would have 
them damned, for their relief and advantage. " Is not this 
a brand plucked out of the fire?" This is part of the 
plea of our Advocate against Satan, for his servant Joshua, 
when he said, " The Lord rebuke thee, Satan." Zech. 
3:2. Now, to be a brand plucked out of the fire, is to be 
a saint— -impatient, weakened, defiled, and made imperfect 
by sin. This then is the next plea of our goodly Advocate 
for us : "0 Satan, this is a brand plucked out of the fire." 
As if he should say, "Thou objectest against my servant 
Joshua, that he is black like a coal, or that the fire of sin 
at times is still burning in him. And what then? The 
reason why he is not totally extinct as tow, is not thy 
pity but my Father's mercy to him. I have plucked him 
out of the fire, yet not so out but that the smell thereof is 
yet upon him ; and my Father and I, we consider his 
weakness and pity him; for since he is as a brand pulled 
out, can it be expected by my Father or me, that he should 
appear before us as clear and do our biddings as well as if 
he had never been there ? This is a brand plucked out of 
the fire, and must be considered as such, and must be 
borne with as such." 



His righteousness Christ presents to God for us ; and 
God, for this righteousness' sake, is well pleased that we 
should be saved, and for it can save us and secure his 
honor and preserve the law in its sanction. 

For Christ, in pleading against Satan as an advocate 
with the Father for us, appeals to the law itself if he has 
not done it justice; saying, "Most mighty law, what 
command of thine have I not fulfilled ? What demand of 



CHRIST AN ADVOCATE. 131 

thine have I not fully answered? Where is that jot or 
tittle of the law that is able to object against my doings 
for want of satisfaction ?" 

Here the law is mute ; it speaks not one word by way 
of the least complaint, but rather testifies of this righteous- 
ness that it is good and holy. Rom. 3 : 22, 23 ; 5 : 15-19. 

Now then, since Christ did this as a public person, it 
follows that others must be justified thereby; for that was 
the end and reason of Christ's taking on him to do the 
righteousness of the law. Nor can the law object against 
the equity of this dispensation of heaven ; for why might 
not that God who gave the law its being and its sanction, 
dispose as he pleases of the righteousness which it com- 
mends ? Besides, if men be made righteous, they are so ; 
and if by a righteousness which the law commends, how 
can fault be found with them by the law ? Nay, it is 
" witnessed by the law and the prophets," who consent 
that it should be " unto all and upon all them that be- 
lieve," for their justification. Rom. 3 : 20, 21. 

And that the mighty God sufFereth the prince of the 
devils to do with the law what he can against this most 
wholesome and godly doctrine, it is to show the truth, 
goodness, and permanency thereof; for this is as if it were 
said, Devil, do thy worst. 

When the law is in the hand of an easy pleader, though 
the cause that he pleads be good, a crafty opposer may 
overthrow the right ; but here is the salvation of the chil- 
dren in debate, whether it can stand with law and justice : 
the opposer of this is the devil, his argument against it is 
the law ; he that defends the doctrine is Christ the advo- 
cate, who in his plea must justify the justice of God, defend 
the holiness of the law, and save the sinner from all the 
arguments, pleas, stops, and demurs that Satan is able to 
put in against it. And this he must do fairly, righteously, 
simply, pleading the voice of the self-same law for the jus- 
tification of the soul that he standeth for, which Satan 



132 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

pleads against it ; for though it is by the new law that our 
salvation comes, yet by the old law is the new law ap- 
proved of, and the way of salvation thereby consented to. 



VIII. THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

It is the Spirit of God, even the Holy Ghost that con- 
vinceth us of sin, and so of our damnable state because 
of sin. 

Therefore the Spirit of God, when he worketh in the 
heart as a spirit of bondage, doeth it by working in us by 
the law, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. Horn. 
3 : 20. And he in this his working is properly called a spirit 
of bondage ; because by the law he shows us that indeed 
we are in bondage to the law, the devil, and death and 
damnation. 

He is called in his working the spirit of bondage, be- 
cause he here also holds us — to wit, in this sight and sense 
of our bondage state — so long as it is meet we should be so 
held ; which to some of the saints is a longer, and. to some 
a shorter time. Paul was held in it three days and three 
nights, but the jailer and the three thousand, so far as can 
be gathered, not above an hour ; but some in these later 
times are so held for days and months, if not for years. 
But I say, let the time be longer or shorter, it is the Spirit 
of God that holdeth him under this yoke, and it is good that 
a man should be his time held under it. 

Now, as I said, the sinner at first is by the Spirit of God 
held under this bondage ; that is, hath such a discovery of 
his sin and of his damnation for sin made to him, and also 
is held so fast under the sense thereof, that it is not in the 
power of any man, nor yet of the very angels in heaven, to 
release or set him free, until the Holy Spirit changeth his 
ministration and comes in the sweet and peaceable tidings 



THE HOLY SPIRIT. 133 

of salvation by Christ in the gospel to his poor dejected 
and afflicted conscience. 



The Spirit loveth to do what it does in private : that 
man to whom God intendeth to reveal great things, he 
taketh him aside from the lumber and cumber of this world, 
and carrieth him away in the solace and contemplation of 
the things of another world. 



This water of life is the very groundwork of life in us, 
though not the groundwork of life for us. The ground- 
work of life for us is the passion and merits of Christ ; this 
is that for the sake of which grace is given unto us, as is 
intimated by the text, Rev. 22 : 1. It proceeds from the 
throne of God, who is Christ. Christ then having obtained 
grace for us, must needs be precedent as to his merit, to that 
grace he hath so obtained. Besides, it is clear that the 
Spirit and grace come from God through him. Therefore, 
as to the communication of grace to us, it is the fruit of 
his merit and purchase. 

But I say, in us grace is the groundwork of life ; for 
though we may be said before to live virtually in the per- 
son of Christ before God, yet we are dead in ourselves, and 
so must be until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high ; 
for the Spirit is life, and its graces are life, and when that 
is infused by God from the throne, then we live, and not 
till then. And hence it is called as before, living water, 
the water of life, springing up in us into everlasting life. 
The Spirit then and graces of the Spirit, which is the river 
here spoken of, is that, and that only, which can cause us 
to live ; that being life to the soul, as the soul is life to the 
body. All men therefore, as was said afore — though elect, 
though purchased by the blood of Christ — are dead and 
must be dead until the Spirit of life from God and his 
throne shall enter into them ; until they shall drink it in by 
vehement thirst, as the parched ground drinks in the rain. 



134 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Now when this living water is received, it takes up its 
seat in the heart, whence it spreads itself to the awaken- 
ing of all the powers of the soul. For as in the first crea- 
tion, the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, 
in order to the putting of that creation into that excellent 
fashion and harmony which now we behold with our eyes, 
even so the new creation, to wit, the making of us new 
to God, is done by the overspreading of the same Spirit 
also. 



As the herb that is planted or seed sown needs watering 
with continual showers of the mountains, so our graces im- 
planted in us by the Spirit of grace must also be watered 
by the rain of Heaven. " Thou waterest the ridges there- 
of abundantly, thou settest the furrows thereof, thou makest 
it soft with showers, thou blessest the springing thereof." 
Hence he says that our graces shall grow. But how? "I 
will be as the dew unto Israel ; he shall grow as the lily, 
and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall 
spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive-tree, and his 
smell as Lebanon. They that dwell under his shadow 
shall return ; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the 
vine ; the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon." 



All the warmth that we have in our communion, is 
the warmth of the Spirit. When a company of saints are 
gathered together in the name of Christ to perform any 
spiritual exercise, and their souls are edified warmly and 
made glad therein, it is because this water, this river of 
water of life, has, in some of the streams thereof, run into 
that assembly. Then are Christians like those that drink 
wine in bowls, merry and glad; for that they have drank 
into the Spirit, and had their souls refreshed with the 
sweet gales and strong wine thereof. This is the feast that 
Isaiah speaks of when he saith, "In this mountain shall 
the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, 



THE HOLY SPIRIT. 135 

a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, 
of wines on the lees well refined." Isa. 25 : 6. This is 
called in another place, " The communion of the Holy- 
Ghost. " 2 Cor. 13 : 14. Now he warmeth spirits, unit- 
eth spirits, enlighteneth spirits, reviveth, cherisheth, quick- 
eneth, strengtheneth graces ; renews assurances, brings old 
comforts to mind, weakens lusts, emboldeneth and raiseth 
a spirit of faith, of love, of hope, of prayer, and makes the 
word a blessing, conference a blessing, meditation a bless- 
ing, and duty very delightful to the soul. Without this 
water of life, communion is weak, flat, cold, dead, fruitless, 
lifeless ; there is nothing seen, felt, heard, or understood, 
in a spiritual, heart-quickening way. Now ordinances are 
burdensome, sins strong, faith weak, hearts hard, and the 
faces of our souls dry, like the dry and parched ground. 

This drink also revives us when tempted, when sick, 
when persecuted, when in the dark, and when we faint for 
thirst. The life of religion is this water of life ; where 
that runs, where that is received, and where things are 
done in this spirit, there all things are well — the church 
thrifty, the soul thrifty, graces thrifty, and all is well. 



You that are spiritual, you know what a high and goodly 
lifting up of heart one small gale of the good Spirit of God 
will make in your souls ; how it will make your lusts to 
languish, and your souls to love and take pleasure in the 
Lord that saves you. You know,, I say, what a flame of 
love, and compassion, and self-denial, and endeared affec- 
tion to God and all saints, it will beget in the soul : " Oh, 
it is good to be here," saith the gracious heart. 



This is the reason why so many are carried away with 
the errors that are broached in these days, because they 
have not indeed received the Lord Jesus by the revelation 
of the Spirit and with power, but by the relation of others 
only ; and so having no other witness to set them down 



136 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

withal, but the history of the word and the relation of others 
concerning the truths contained in it, yet not having had 
the Spirit of the Lord to confirm these things effectually to 
them, they are carried away with delusions. 



IX. JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH. 

True justifying faith is said to receive, to embrace, to 
obey the Son of God as tendered in the gospel ; by which 
expressions is showed both the nature of justifying faith 
in its actings in point of justification, and also the cause of 
its being full of good works in the world. A gift is not 
made mine by my seeing it, or because I know the na- 
ture of the thing so given ; but it is mine if I receive 
and embrace it, yea, and as to the point in hand, if I yield 
myself up to stand and fall by it. Now he that shall not 
only see but receive, not only know but embrace the Son 
of God to be justified by him, cannot but bring forth good 
works ; because Christ, who is now received and embraced 
by faith, leavens and seasons the spirit of this sinner, 
through his faith, to the making of him so to be. Acts 
15:9. For faith-has joined Christ and the soul together, 
and being so joined, the soul is one spirit with him : not 
essentially, but in agreement and oneness of design. Be- 
sides, when Christ is truly received and embraced to the 
justifying of the sinner, in that man's heart he dwells by 
his word and Spirit through the same faith also. Now 
Christ by his Spirit and word must needs season the soul 
he thus dwells in ; so then the soul being seasoned, it sea- 
soneth the body and soul, the life and conversation. 

If the receiving of a temporal gift naturally tends to 
the making of us to move our cap and knee, and binds us 
to be the servant of the giver, shall we think that faith 
will leave him who by it has received Christ, to be as un- 
concerned as a stock or stone, or that its utmost excellency 
is to provoke the soul to a lip-labor, and to give Christ a 



FAITH THE CAUSE OF SALVATION. 137 

few fair words for his pains and grace, and so wrap up the 
"business ? No, no ; the love of Christ constraineth us thus 
to judge, that it is but reasonable, since he gave his all for 
us, that we should give our some for him. 2 Cor. 5 : 14. 



We are said to be saved by faith, because by faith we 
lay hold of, venture upon, and put on Jesus Christ for 
life : for life, I say, because God having made him the 
Saviour, has given him life to communicate to sinners ; 
and the life that he communicates to them is the merit of 
his flesh and blood, which whoso eateth and drinketh by 
faith hath eternal life, because that flesh and blood have 
merit sufficient to obtain the favor of God. Yea, it hath 
done so, that day it was offered through the eternal Spirit 
a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savor to him. Wherefore 
God imputeth the righteousness of Christ to him that be- 
lieveth in him, by which righteousness he is personally 
justified and saved from that just judgment of the law that 
was due unto him. John 5:26; 6 : 53-57 ; Eph. 4 : 32 ; 
5:2; Rom. 4 : 23-25. 

Here let Christians warily distinguish betwixt the mer- 
itorious and the instrumental cause of their justification. 
Christ, with what he has done and suffered, is the meritorious 
cause of our justification ; therefore he is said to be "made 
unto us of God wisdom and righteousness," and we are said 
to be "justified by his blood and saved from wrath through 
him," 1 Cor. 1 : 30 ; Horn. 5 : 9, 10 ; for it was his life and 
blood that was the price of our redemption. 

Thou art therefore to make Christ Jesus the object of 
thy faith for justification ; for by his righteousness thy sins 
must be covered from the sight of the justice of the law. 
Acts 16:31 ; Matt. 1:21. 



FAITH THE INSTRUMENTAL CAUSE OF SALVA- 
TION. 

Faith as the gift of God is not the Saviour, as our act 

doth merit nothing. Faith was not the cause that God 



138 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

gave Christ, neither is it the cause why God converts men 
to Christ ; but faith is a gift bestowed upon us by the gra- 
cious God, the nature of which is to lay hold on Christ, 
whom God before did give for a ransom to redeem sinners. 
This faith hath its nourishment and supplies from the same 
God who at the first did give it ; and is the only instru- 
ment through the Spirit that doth keep the soul in a com- 
fortable frame both to do and suffer ; for Christ helps 
the soul to receive comfort from him, when it can get none 
from itself, bearing up the soul in its progress heavenward. 
But that it is the first cause of salvation, I deny ; or that 
it is the second, I deny. It is only the instrument or hand 
that receiveth the benefits that God hath prepared for thee 
before thou hadst any faith ; so that we do nothing for sal- 
vation, as men. But if we speak properly, it was God's 
grace that moved him to give Christ a ransom for sinners, 
and the same God with the same grace, that doth give to 
the soul faith to believe and by believing to close in with 
him whom God out of his love and pity did send into the 
world to save sinners ; so that all the works of the creature 
are shut out as to justification and life, and men are saved 
freely by grace. 



TRUE AND FALSE FAITH DISTINGUISHED. 

There are two sorts of good works ; and a man may be 
shrewdly guessed at with reference to his faith, even by the 
works that he chooseth to be conversant in. 

There are works that cost nothing, and works that are 
chargeable ; and observe it, the unsound faith will choose 
to itself the most easy works it can find : for example, 
there is reading, praying, hearing of sermons, baptism, 
breaking of bread, church-fellowship, preaching, and the 
like ; and there is mortification of lusts, charity, simplicity, 
and open-heartedness with a liberal hand to the poor, and 
their like also. Now, the unsound faith picks and chooses, 
and takes and leaves ; but the true faith does not so. 



FAITH AND WORKS. 139 

Satan is afraid that men should hear of justification by- 
Christ, lest they should embrace it. But yet if he can 
prevail with them to keep fingers off, although they do 
hear and look on and practise lesser things, he can the bet- 
ter bear it ; yea, he will labor to make such professors bold 
to conclude they shall by that kind of faith enjoy Christ, 
though by that they cannot embrace him nor lay hold of 
him ; for he knows that how far soever a man engages in a 
profession of Christ with a faith that looks on but cannot 
receive nor embrace him, that faith will leave him to 
nothing but mistakes and disappointments at last. 

The Son of God was manifest that he might destroy 
the works of the devil, but these men profess his faith and 
keep these works alive in the world. 1 John, 3. Shall 
these pass or such as believe to the saving of the soul ? 
For a man to be content with this kind of faith and to look 
to go to salvation by it, what to God is a greater provoca- 
tion ? 

The devil laugheth here, for he knows he has not lost 
his vassal by such a faith as this, but that rather he hath 
made use of the gospel, that glorious word of life, to secure 
his captive, through his presumption of the right faith, the 
faster in his shackles. 



FAITH AND WORKS. 
When 1 write of justification before God from the 
dreadful curse of the law, then I must speak of nothing 
but grace, Christ, the promise, and faith ; but when I speak 
of our justification before men, then I must join to these 
good works ; for grace, Christ, and faith are things invisi- 
ble, and so not to be seen by another, otherwise than 
through a life that befits so blessed a gospel as has declared 
unto us the remission of our sins for the sake of Jesus 
Christ. He then that would have forgiveness of sins, and 
so be delivered from the curse of God, must believe in the 
righteousness and blood of Christ ; but he that would show 



140 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

to his neighbors that he hath truly received this mercy of 
God, must do it by good works, for all things else to them 
is but talk ; as for example, a tree is known to be what it 
is, whether of this or that kind, by its fruit. A tree it is 
without fruit ; but so long as it so abideth, there is minis- 
tered occasion to doubt what manner of tree it is. 



JUSTIFICATION AND SANCTIFICATION DISTIN- 
GUISHED. 

A believer is to do nothing for justification, only be- 
lieve and be saved ; though the law be a rule for every one 
that believes to walk by, it is not for justification. But if 
you do not put a difference between justification wrought 
by the Man Christ without, and sanctification wrought by 
the Spirit of Christ within, teaching believers their duty to 
their God for his love in giving Christ, you are not able to 
divide the word aright ; but contrariwise, you corrupt the 
word of God, and cast stumbling-blocks before the people, 
and will certainly one day most deeply smart for your 
folly, except you repent. 



To those who do believe in Christ aright, and lay him 
for their foundation : see that you are laborers after a more 
experimental knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ ; fly more 
to his birth, death, blood, resurrection, ascension, and inter- 
cession, and fetch refreshing for your souls more and more 
from him without, through the operation of his Spirit 
within ; and though the fruits of the Spirit be excellent, 
and to be owned where they are found, yet have a care you 
take not away the glory of the blood of Christ shed on the 
cross without the gates of Jerusalem, and give it them ; 
which you will do, if you content yourselves and satisfy 
your consciences with this — that you find the fruits of the 
Spirit within you — and do not go for peace and consolation 
of conscience to the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. 

Therefore learn of the saints, or rather of the Spirit, who 
teaches to sing this song, " Thou art worthy to take the 



JUSTIFICATION AND SANCTIFICATION. 141 

book and to open the seals thereof, for thou wast slain and 
hast redeemed us to God by thy blood." Rev. 5 : 9. 

And as for you that cannot yet well endure to think 
that you should be justified by the blood of the Son of Mary 
shed on the cross without the gate, I say to you, " Kiss the 
Son. lest he be angry and ye perish from the way, when 
his wrath is kindled but a little : blessed are all they that 
put their trust in him." Psa. 2:12. 



The work of the Spirit is to lead us into the sayings of 
Christ ; which, as to our redemption from death, are such 
as these : " I lay down my life, that you may have life ; I 
give my life a ransom for many; and the bread which 
I give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the 
world." 

The Holy Ghost breatheth nowhere so as in the minis- 
try of this doctrine; this doctrine is sent with the Holy 
Ghost from heaven. 



What is the church of God redeemed by from the curse 
of the law ? It is by something done within them, or by 
something done without them. 

If you say it is redeemed by something that worketh in 
them, then why did the man Christ Jesus hang on the 
cross on Calvary, without the gate of Jerusalem, for the 
sins of his children ? and why do the Scriptures say that 
"through this man is preached to us the forgiveness of 
sins ?" 

The answer thou givest is, " The church of God is 
redeemed by Christ Jesus who is revealed in all believ- 
ers, and Christ Jesus wrought in them mightily, and it 
was he that wrought in them to will and to do. This is 
plain scripture ; and the man Christ Jesus,'' sayest thou, 
"hanged on the cross on Calvary because they wickedly 
judged him to be a blasphemer, and through their envy 
persecuted him to death because he bore witness against 



142 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

them, and in their account he died and hanged on the 
cross an evil-doer." 

Ha, friend, I had thought thou hadst not been so much 
hardened. Art thou not ashamed thus to slight the death 
of the man Christ Jesus on the cross, and reckon it not 
effectual for salvation, but sayest, the church is redeemed 
by Christ Jesus who is revealed within ? and to confirm it, 
thou dost also corruptly bring in this scripture; "Where- 
unto I labor, according to his working which worketh in 
me mightily ;" by which words Paul signifies, that as God 
was with him in the ministry of the word, so did he also 
strive according to his working which wrought in him 
mightily. What is this to the purpose ? 

That thy answer is false, I shall clearly prove. First, 
because thou deemest that redemption was wrought out 
for sinners by the man Christ Jesus on the cross on Cal- 
vary ; when the scripture says plainly, that when he did 
hang on the tree, then did he bear our sins there in his 
own body. And secondly, in thy saying it is redeemed 
by Christ within by being within, when the work of the 
Spirit of Christ in believers is to make known to the soul, 
by dwelling within, which way and how they are re- 
deemed by the man Christ Jesus on the cross. And this I 
prove further, because when thou art forced to answer to 
these words, Why did the man Christ Jesus hang on the 
cross on Calvary for the sins of his children? thou say- 
est, " Because they wickedly judged him to be a blas- 
phemer." Friend, I did not ask thee why the Jews did 
put him to death ; but why was he crucified there for the 
sins of his children ? But thou, willing to cover over thine 
error, goest on cunningly, saying, that through their envy 
they persecuted him to death for an evil-doer. 



As for thy saying that salvation is Christ within, if 
thou mean in opposition to Christ without, instead of plead- 
ing for Christ thjou wilt plead against him; for Christ, 



JUSTIFICATION AND SAN CTIFIC ATION. 143 

God-man, without on the cross, did bring m salvation for 
sinners ; and the right believing of that justifies the soul. 
Therefore Christ within, or the Spirit of him who did give 
himself a ransom, doth not work out justification for the 
soul in the soul, but doth lead the soul out of itself and out 
of what can be done within itself, to look for salvation in 
that Man that is now absent from his saints on earth. 
2 Cor. 5:6. Why so ? For it knows that there is salva- 
tion in none other, Acts 4: 12; and therefore I would 
wish thee to have a care what thou doest, for I tell thee, 
that Man who is now jeered by some, because he is preach- 
ed to be without them, will very suddenly come the second 
time to the great overthrow of those who have spoken and 
shall still speak against him. 

And indeed they that will follow Christ aright must 
follow him without, to the cross without, for justification on 
Calvary without — that is, they must seek for justification 
by his obedience without — to the grave without, and to 
his ascension and intercession in heaven without ; and this 
must be done through the operation of his own Holy Spirit 
that he has promised shall show these things unto them, 
being given within them for that purpose. Now the Spirit 
of Christ, that leads also ; but whither ? It leads to Christ 
without. 



What a poor argument is this to say, that " because 
the Spirit of Christ doth convince of sin, therefore whatso- 
ever doth convince of sin must needs be the Spirit of 
Christ :" as much as to say, because the saints are called 
the light of the world, therefore the saints are the Saviour 
of the world, seeing Christ also doth call himself the light 
of the world ; or because the moon hath or is light, there- 
fore the moon is the sun. 



144 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 



X. CONVICTION OF SIN. 

When man is taken and laid under the day of God's 
power, when Christ is opening his ear to discipline, and 
speaking to him that his heart may receive instruction, 
many times that poor man is as if the devil had found him, 
and not God. How frenzily he imagines ; how crossly he 
thinks ; how ungainly he carries it under convictions, coun- 
sels, and his present apprehension of things ! I know some 
are more powerfully dealt withal, and more strongly bound 
at first by the word ; but others more in an ordinary man- 
ner, that the flesh and reason may be seen to the glory of 
Christ. Yea, and where the will is made more quickly to 
comply with its salvation, it is no thanks to the sinner at 
all. It is the day of the power of the Lord that has made 
the work so soon to appear. Therefore count this an act 
of love, in the height of love ; love in a great degree. 



" I heard thy voice in the garden." Gen. 3:10. It is 
a word from without that does it. While Adam listened to 
his own heart, he thought fig-leaves a sufficient remedy ; 
but the voice that walked in the garden shook him out of 
all such fancies. 



A man's own righteousness will not fortify his con- 
science from fear and terror, when God begins to come 
near to him to judgment. 



Few know the weight of sin. When the guilt thereof 
takes hold of the conscience, it commands homeward all 
the faculties of the soul. 



It was upon this account that Peter and James and 
John were called the sons of thunder, because in the word 
which they were to preach there were to be not only light- 
nings, but thunders — not only illuminations, but a great 



CONVICTION OF SIN. 145 

seizing of the heart with the dread and majesty of God, to 
the effectual turning of the sinner to him. 

Lightnings without thunder are in this case dangerous, 
because they that receive the one without the other are 
subject to miscarry: they were once enlightened, but you 
read of no thunder they had, and they were subject to fall 
into an irrecoverable state. Paul had thunder with his 
lightning, to the shaking of his soul ; so had the three 
thousand, so had the jailer : they that receive light with- 
out thunder, are subject to turn the grace of God into wan- 
tonness ; but they that know the terror of God will per- 
suade men. So then, when he decrees to give the rain of 
his grace to a man, he makes a way for the lightning and 
thunder ; not the one without the other, but the one fol- 
lowing the other. 

We have had great lightnings in this land of late years, 
but little thunders ; and that is one reason why so little 
grace is found where light is, and why so many professors 
run on their heads in such a day as this is, notwithstanding 
all they have seen. 



The method of God is to kill and make alive, to smite 
and then heal. 



He that hath not seen his lost condition, hath not seen 
a safe condition ; he that did never see himself in the 
devil's snare, did never see himself in Christ's bosom.' 



Grace proceeds from the throne, from the throne of God 
and of the Lamb. Wherefore, sinner, here is laid a neces- 
sity upon thee ; one of the two must be thy lot : either thou 
must accept of God's grace, and be content to be saved free- 
ly thereby, notwithstanding all thy undeservings and un- 
worthiness, or else thou must be damned for thy rebellion, 
and for thy neglecting of this grace. Wherefore consider 
with thyself, and think what is best to be done. Is it bet- 

Rjches of Bunyan. / 



146 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ter that thou submit to the grace and mercy of God, and 
that thou accept of grace to reign for thee, in thee, and 
over thee, than that thou shouldst run the hazard of eter- 
nal damnation because thou wouldst not be saved by 
grace? Consider of this, I say, for grace is now in author- 
ity : it reigns, and proceeds from the throne. This there- 
fore calls for thy most grave and sedate thoughts. Thou 
art in a strait ; wilt thou fly before Moses, or with David 
fall into the hands of the Lord ? Wilt thou go to hell for 
sin, or to life by grace ? One of the two, as was said before, 
must be thy lot ; for grace is king, is upon the throne, and 
will admit of no other way to glory. Rom. 5:2. In and 
by it thou must stand, if thou hast any hope, or canst at all 
rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 



If thou do get off thy convictions, and not the right 
way — which is by seeing thy sins washed away by the blood 
of Jesus Christ — it is a question whether God will ever 
knock at thy heart again or no; but rather say, " Such a 
one is joined to idols; let him alone. My spirit, my min- 
isters, my word, my mercy, my grace, my love, my pity, 
my common providences, shall no more strive with him ; 
let him alone." sad! miserable! who would slight 
convictions that are on their souls, which tend so much for 
their good ? 

In the creation of man, God began with his outside ; 
but in the work of regeneration, he first begins within, at 
the heart. 



Whoever receive the grace that is tendered in the gos- 
pel, they must be quickened by the power of God, their 
eyes must be opened, their understandings illuminated, 
their ears unstopped, their hearts circumcised, their wills 
also rectified, and the Son of God revealed in them. 



CONVERSION THE POWER OF G-OD. 147 

XI. CONVERSION. 

THE DIFFICULTY OF CONVERSION. 
Conversion to G-od is not so easy and so smooth a thing, 
as some would have men believe it is. Why is man's heart 
compared to fallow ground, God's word to a plough, and 
his ministers to ploughmen, if the heart indeed has no need 
of breaking in order to the receiving of the seed of God un- 
to eternal life ? Why is the conversion of the soul com- 
pared to the grafting of a tree, if that be done without 
cutting ? 

CONVERSION THE POWER OF GOD. 

A broken heart is the handy-work of God, a sacrifice of 
his own preparing, a material fitted for himself. By break- 
ing the heart he opens it, and makes it a receptacle for the 
graces of his Spirit ; that is the cabinet, when unlocked, 
where God lays up the jewels of the gospel: there he puts 
his fear: "I will put my fear in their heart;" there he 
writes his law: "I will write my law in their heart;" 
there he puts his Spirit: "I will put my Spirit within 
you." 

The heart God chooses for his cabinet : there he hides 
his treasure ; there is the seat of justice, mercy, and of 
every grace of God. 



Here is naught but open war, acts of hostility, and 
shameful rebellion on the sinner's side ; and what delight 
can God take in that ? Wherefore, if God will bend and 
buckle the spirit of such a one, he must shoot an arrow 
at him, a bearded arrow, such as may not be plucked out 
of the wound — an arrow that will stick fast, and cause 
that the sinner fall down as dead at God's foot. Then 
will the sinner deliver up his arms, and surrender up him- 
self as one conquered into the hand of God, and beg for the 
Lord's pardon, and not till then sincerely. 



148 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

And now God has overcome, and his right hand and 
his holy arm have gotten him the victory. Now he rides 
in triumph, with his captive at his chariot- wheel ; now he 
glories, now the bells in heaven do ring, now the angels 
shout for joy, yea, are bid to do so : " Rejoice with me, for 
I have found my sheep which was lost." 



REG-ENEHATION. 
Thou thinkest that thou art a Christian ; thou shouldst 
be sorry else. Well, but when did God show thee that thou 
wert no Christian ? "When didst thou see that ; and in the 
light of the Spirit of Christ see that thou wert under the 
wrath of God because of original sin ? Rom. 5:12. Nay, 
dost thou know what original sin means ? Is it not the 
least in thy thoughts ? And dost thou not rejoice in secret 
that thou art the same that thou ever wert ? If so, then 
know for certain that the wrath of God to this very day 
abideth on thee, John 3 : 36 ; and if so, then thou art one 
of those that will fall in the judgment, except thou art 
born again and made a new creature. 2 Cor. 5 : 17. 



THE STRAIT G-ATE. 

The porch, at which was an ascent to the temple, had 
a gate belonging to it. This gate, according to the prophet 
Ezekiel, was six cubits wide. The leaves of this gate 
were double, one folding this way, the other folding that. 
Ezek. 40 : 48. 

Now here some may object, and say, " Since the way 
to God by these doors was so wide, why doth Christ say 
the way and gate is narrow?" 

Answer. The straitness, the narrowness, must not be 
understood of the gate simply, but because of that cumber 
that some men carry with them that pretend to be going 
to heaven. Six cubits ! What is sixteen cubits to him 
who would enter in here with all the world on his back ? 
The young man in the gospel who made such a noise for 



COMING TO CHRIST. 149 

heaven, might have gone in easy enough, for in six cubits* 
breadth there is room ; but, poor man, he was not for 
going in thither unless he might carry in his houses upon 
his shoulders too ; and so the gate was strait. Mark 
10:17-23. 

Wherefore, he that will enter in at the gate of heaven, 
of which this gate into the temple was a type, must go in 
by himself, and not with his bundles of trash on his back ; 
and if he will go in thus, he need not fear but there is room. 
"The righteous nation that keepeth the truth, they shall 
enter in." 

They that enter in at the gate of the inner court must 
be clothed in fine linen ; how then shall they go into the 
temple that carry the clogs of the dirt of this world at their 
heels? Thus saith the Lord, "No stranger uncircumcised 
in heart, or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my 
sanctuary." 

The wideness, therefore, of this gate, is for this cause 
here made mention of, namely, to encourage them that 
would gladly enter thereat according to the mind of God, 
and not to flatter them that are not for leaving off all for 
God. 

Wherefore let such as would go in remember that here 
is room, even a gate to enter at, six cubits wide. We have 
been all this while but on the outside of the temple, even 
in the courts of the house of the Lord, to see the beauty and 
glory that is there. The beauty hereof made men cry out 
and say, "How amiable are thy tabernacles, Lord of 
hosts ; my soul longeth, yea, fainteth for the courts of the 
Lord;" and to say, " A day in thy courts is better than a 
thousand." 



COMING TO CHRIST. 
Question. How must I be qualified before I shall dare 
to believe in Christ ? 

Answer. Come, sensible of thy sins and of the wrath 



150 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

of God due unto them, for thus thou art bid to comes 
Matt. 11 :28. 

Question. Did ever any come thus to Christ ? 

Answer. David came thus, Paul and the jailer came 
thus; also Christ's murderers came thus. Psa. 51 : 1-3 ; 
Acts 9:6; 16 : 30, 31 ; 2:37. 

Question. But doth it not seem most reasonable that 
we should first mend and be good ? 

Answer. The whole have no need of the physician, but 
those that are sick ; Christ came not to call the righteous, 
but sinners to repentance. 

Question. But is it not the best way, if one can, to 
mend first ? 

Answer. This is just as if a sick man should say, " Is 
it not best for me to be well before I go to the physician ?" 
or as if a wounded man should say, " When I am cured I 
will lay on the plaster." 

Question. But when a poor creature sees its vileness, it 
is afraid to come to Christ, is it not ? 

Answer. Yes, but without ground ; for he has said, 
" Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear 
not ;" and "to this man will I look, even to him that is 
poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word." 
Isa. 35:4; 66 : 2. 

Question. "What encouragement can be given us thus 
to come ? 

Answer. The prodigal came thus, and his father re- 
ceived him, and fell upon his neck and kissed him. Thus 
Christ received the Colossians, and consequently all that 
are saved. Luke 15 ; Col. 2 : 13. 

Question. Will you give me one more encouragement ? 

Answer. The promises are so worded, that they that 
are scarlet sinners, crimson sinners, blasphemous sinners, 
have encouragement to come to him with hopes of life. 
Isa. 1:18; Mark 3 : 28 ; John 6 : 36 ; Luke 24 : 47 ; Acts 
13:36. 



TEMPTATIONS OF THE SOUL. 1,3! 

TEMPTATIONS OF THE SOUL COMING- TO CHRIST. 

No sooner doth Satan perceive what God is doing with 
the soul in a way of grace and mercy, but he endeavoreth 
what he may, to make the renewing thereof bitter and weari- 
some work to the sinner. what mists, what mountains, 
what clouds, what darkness, what objections, what false 
apprehensions of God, of Christ, of grace, of the word, and of 
the soul's condition, doth he now lay before it, and haunt it 
with ! whereby he dejecteth, casteth down, daunteth, dis- 
tresseth, and almost driveth it quite into despair. Now, 
by the reason of these things, faith and all the grace that is 
in the soul is hard put to it to come at the promise, and by 
the promise, to Christ ; as it is said, when the tempest and 
great danger of shipwreck lay upon the vessel in which 
Paul was, " They had much work to come by the boat." 
Acts 27 : 16. For Satan's design is, if he cannot keep the 
soul from Christ, to make his coming to him and closing 
with him as hard, as difficult and troublesome as he by his 
devices can. But faith, true justifying faith, is a grace 
that is not weary by all that Satan can do ; but meditateth 
upon the word, and taketh stomach and courage, fighteth and 
crieth ; and by crying and fighting, by help from heaven, 
its way is made through all the oppositions that appear so 
mighty, and draweth up at last to Jesus Christ, into whose 
bosom it putteth the soul ; where, for the time, it sweetly 
resteth, after its marvellous tossings to and fro. 

And besides what hath been said, let me yet illustrate 
this truth unto you by this familiar similitude. 

Suppose a man, a traitor, that by the law should die for 
his sin, is yet such a one that the king hath exceeding kind- 
ness for ; may not the king of his clemency pardon this 
man, yea, order that his pardon should be drawn up and 
sealed, and so in every sense be made sure, and yet for the 
present keep all this close enough from the ears or the 
knowledge of the person therein concerned? Yea, may 
not the king after all leave this person, with others under 



152 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

the same transgression, to sue for and obtain this pardon 
with great expense and difficulty, with many tears and 
heartachings, with many fears and dubious cogitations ? 

Why, this is the case between God and the soul that he 
saveth : he saveth him, pardoneth him, and secureth him 
from the curse and death that are due unto sin, but yet 
doth not tell him so ; but he ascends in his great suit unto 
God for it. Only this difference we must make between 
God and the potentates of this world : God cannot pardon 
before the sinner stands before him righteous by the light- 
eousness of Christ ; because he has, in judgment, and 
justice, and righteousness, threatened and concluded that 
he that lacks righteousness shall die. 



TRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS OF THE 
AWAKENED. 

There are two things in special, when men begin to be 
awakened, that kill their thoughts of being saved. 

1. A sense of sin. 2. The wages due thereto. These 
kill the heart ; for who can bear up under the guilt of sin? 
" If our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how 
can we then live?" How, indeed! it is impossible. So 
neither can man grapple with the justice of God. Can 
thy heart endure, or thy hands be strong ? they cannot. 
A wounded spirit, who can bear ? Men cannot, angels 
cannot ; wherefore, if now Christ be hid, and the blessing 
of faith in his blood denied, woe be to them : such go after 
Saul and Judas, one to the sword and the other to the 
halter, and so miserably end their days. For come to God 
they dare not ; the thoughts of that eternal Majesty strike 
them through. 

But now present such poor dejected sinners with a cru- 
cified Christ, and persuade them that the sins under which 
they shake and tremble were long ago laid upon the back 
of Christ, and the noise and sense and fear of damning 
begins to cease, depart, and fly away : dolors and terrors 



TRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS. 153 

fade and vanish, and that sonl conceiveth hopes of life ; for 
thus the soul argueth : "Is this indeed the truth of God, 
that Christ was made to be sin to me — was made the curse 
of God for me ? Hath he indeed borne all my sins, and 
spilt his blood for my redemption ? blessed tidings, 
welcome grace ! Bless the Lord, my soul, and all that 
is within me, bless his holy name. Now is peace come, 
now the face of heaven is altered. Behold, all things are 
become new." Now the sinner can abide God's presence, 
yea, sees unutterable glory and beauty in him ; for here he 
sees justice smile. While Jacob was afraid of Esau, how 
heavily did he drive, even towards the promised land ; but 
when killing thoughts were turned into kissing, and the 
fears of the sword's point turned into brotherly embraces, 
what says he ? " I have seen thy face as though it had 
been the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me." 

So and far better is it with a poor distressed sinner, at 
the revelation of the grace of God through Jesus Christ 
" God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not 
imputing their trespasses unto them." 0, what work will 
such a word make upon a wounded conscience, especially 
when the next words follow : " For he hath made him to 
be sin for us, who knew no sin, that we might be made the 
righteousness of God in him." 

Now the soul sees qualifications able to set him quiet 
in the sight of God— qualifications prepared already. Pre- 
pared, I say, already, and that by God through Christ ; even 
such as can perfectly answer the law. What doth the law 
require ? If obedience, here it is ; if bloody sacrifice, here 
it is ; if infinite righteousness, here it is. Now then the 
law condemns no more him that believes before God ; for 
all its demands are answered, all its curses are swallowed 
up in the death and curse Christ underwent. 

Objection. But reason saith, " Since personal sin 

brought the death, surely personal obedience must bring 

us life and glory." 

7# 



154 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Answer. True, reason saith so, and so doth the law 
itself, Rom. 10:5; but God we know is above them both, 
and he in the covenant of grace saith otherwise, to wit, 
" That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, 
and shalt believe in thy heart that God hath raised him 
from the dead, thou shalt be saved." 

Let reason then hold its tongue ; yea, let the law with 
all its wisdom subject itself to him that made it ; let it 
look for sin where God hath laid it ; let it approve the 
righteousness which God approveth : yea, though it be not 
that of the law, but that by faith of Jesus Christ. 

God hath made him our righteousness ; God hath made 
him our sin ; God hath made him our curse ; God hath 
made him our blessing : methinks this word, God hath 
made it so, should silence all the world. 



I shall leave the obstinate where I found him, and shall 
say to him that is willing to be saved, " Sinner, thou hast 
the advantage of thy neighbor, not only because thou art 
willing to live, but because there are those that are will- 
ing thou shouldst, to wit, those unto whom the issues of 
death belong ; and they are the Father and the Son, to 
whom be glory with the blessed Spirit of grace." 



I have seen some, that have promised nothing at first 
setting out to be pilgrims, and that one would have thought 
could not have lived another day, that have yet proved 
very good pilgrims. 

Objection. I am afraid the day of grace is past, and 
if it should be, what shall I do then 7 

Answer. With some men indeed, the day of grace is 
past before their lives are at an end : or thus, the day of 
grace is past before the day of death is come ; as Christ 
saith, "If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy 
day, the things which belong unto thy peace," the word of 



TRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS. 155 

grace or reconciliation ; " but now they are hid from thine 
eyes." Luke 19 : 42. But for thy better satisfaction, let 
me ask. Doth the Lord knock still at the door of thy heart, 
by his word and Spirit ? If so, then the day of grace is 
not passed with thy soul ; for where he doth so knock, there 
he doth also proffer and promise to come in and sup, that 
is, to communicate of his love unto them ; which he would 
not do were the day of grace passed with the soul. Hev. 
3:20. 

Objection. But how shall I know whether Christ doth 
so knock at my heart as to be desirous to come in, that I 
may know also whether the day of grace be passed with 
me or not ? 

Answer. Doth the Lord make thee sensible of thy mis- 
erable state without an interest in Jesus Christ ; and that 
naturally thou hast no share in him, no faith in him, no 
communion with him, no delight in him, or the least love 
to him ? If he hath, and is doing this, he is knocking at 
thy heart. Doth he, together with this, put into thy heart 
an earnest desire after communion with him, with holy 
resolutions not to be satisfied without it ? Doth he some- 
times give thee some secret persuasions, though scarcely 
discernible, that thou mayest attain an interest in him ? 
Doth.he now and then glance in some of the promises into 
thy heart, causing them to leave some heavenly savor, 
though but for a short time,, on thy spirit ? Dost thou at 
times see some little excellency in Christ, and doth it stir 
up in thy soul some breathings after him ? If so, then fear 
not. The day of grace is not passed with thy poor soul ; for 
if the day of grace should be passed with such a soul as 
this, then that scripture must be broken, where Christ 
saith, " Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise," upon no 
terms whatsoever, " cast out." John 6 : 37. 



Get thy heart warmed with the sweet promise of 
Christ's acceptance of the coming sinner, and that will 



156 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

make thee make more haste unto him. Discouraging 
thoughts are like unto cold weather ; they benumb the 
senses and make us go ungainly about our business ; but 
the sweet and warm gleeds # of promise are like the com- 
fortable beams of the sun, which enliveneth and refresheth. 
You see how little the bee and the fly do play in the air in 
winter — why, the cold hinders them from doing it : but 
when the wind and sun are warm, who so busy as they ? 



Objection. But saith another, " I am so heartless, so 
slow, and, as I think, so indifferent in my coming, that to 
speak truth, I know not whether my kind of coming ought 
to be called a coming to Christ." 

Answer. I read of some that are to follow Christ in 
chains- — I say, to come after him in chains. Isa. 45 : 14. 
Surely they that come after Christ in chains, come to him 
in great difficulty. 

And what chain so heavy as those that discourage 
thee ? Thy chain, which is made up of guilt and filth, is 
heavy ; it is a wretched band about thy neck, by which 
thy strength doth fail. But come, though thou com est in 
chains ; it is glory to Christ, that a sinner comes after him 
in chains. The chinking of thy chains, though trouble- 
some to thee, is not, nor can be, destruction to thy salva- 
tion. It is Christ's work and glory to save thee from thy 
chains, to enlarge thy steps, and set thee at liberty. The 
blind man, though called, surely could not come apace to 
Jesus Christ ; but Jesus Christ could stand still and stay for 
him. 



. To slight grace, to despise mercy, and to stop the ear 
when God speaks, when he speaks such great things so 
much to our profit, is a great provocation. 

He offers, he calls, he woos, he invites, he prays, he 
beseeches us, in this day of his grace, to be reconciled to 
* Glowing coals* 



TRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS. 157 

him ; yea, and has provided for ns the means of reconcilia- 
tion himself. Now, to despise these must needs be a pro- 
voking ; and it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of 
the living God. 

Objection. But some man may say unto me, " Fain I 
would he saved, fain I would be saved by Christ ; but I 
fear this day of grace is past, and that I shall perish, not- 
withstanding the exceeding riches of the grace of God." 

Answer. To this doubt I would answer several things. 

First, with respect to the day : 1 . Art thou jogged 
and shaken and molested at the hearing of the word ? Is 
thy conscience awakened and convinced, then, that thou 
art at present in a perishing state, and that thou hast need 
to cry to God for mercy ? This is a hopeful sign that the 
day of grace is not past with thee. 

2. Are there in thy more retired condition, arguings, 
strugglings, and strivings with thy spirit to persuade thee 
of the vanity of what vain things thou lovest, and to win 
thee in thy soul to a choice of Christ Jesus and his heav- 
enly things ? Take heed and rebel not, for the day of 
God's grace and patience will not be past with thee till he 
saith his Spirit shall strive no more with thee ; for then 
the woe comes, when he shall depart from them, and when 
he says to the means of grace, "Let them alone." 

3. Art thou visited in the night seasons with dreams 
about thy state, and that thou art in danger of being lost ? 
Hast thou heart-shaking apprehensions, when deep sleep is 
upon thee, of hell, death, and judgment to come ? These 
are signs that God has not wholly left thee, or cast thee 
behind his back for ever. 

All this while God has not left the sinner, nor is come 
to the end of his patience towards him, but stands at least 
with the door of grace ajar in his hand, as being loath as 
yet to bolt it against him. 

4. Art thou followed with affliction, and dost thou hear 
God's angry voice in thy affliction ? Doth he send with 



158 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thy affliction an interpreter to show thee thy vileness, and 
why or wherefore the hand of God is npon thee and upon 
what thou hast, to wit, that it is for thy sinning against 
him, and that thou mightst he turned to him ? If so, thy 
summer is not quite ended, thy harvest is not quite over 
and gone. Take heed ; stand out no longer, lest he cause 
darkness, and lest thy feet stumble upon the dark moun- 
tains, and lest while you look for light, he turn it into the 
shadow of death, and make it gross darkness. 

5. Hast thou any enticing touches of the word of God 
upon thy mind ? Doth as it were some holy word of God 
give a glance upon thee, cast a smile upon thee, let fall 
though it he hut one drop of its savor upon thy spirit ; yea, 
though it stays hut one moment with thee ? Oh, then, the 
day of grace is not past, the gate of heaven is not shut, nor 
God's heart withdrawn from thee as yet. Take heed there- 
fore, and heware that thou make much of the heavenly 
gift and of that good word of God of which he has made 
thee taste. 

Secondly, with respect to thy desires, what are they ? 
Wouldst thou he saved ? Wouldst thou he saved with a 
thorough salvation ? Wouldst thou be saved from guilt 
and filth too ? Wouldst thou he the servant of thy Sav- 
iour ? Art thou indeed weary of the service of thy old 
masters, the devil, sin, and the world ? And have these 
desires put thy soul to the flight ? Hast thou through de- 
sires betaken thyself to thy heels ? Dost thou fly to him 
that is a Saviour from the wrath to come, for life ? 

If these be thy desires, and if they be unfeigned, fear 
not. Thou art one of those runaways which God has 
commanded our Lord to receive, and not to send thee back 
to the devil thy master again, but to give thee a place in 
his house, even the place which thou likest best. 

" But," you say, " I am afraid I am not elect or chosen 
to salvation." 

At present, lay the thoughts of thy election by, and ask 



TRIALS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS. 159 

thyself these questions : Do I see my lost condition ? Do 
I see salvation is nowhere hut in Christ ? Would I share 
in this salvation hy faith in him ? And would I he thor- 
oughly saved from the filth as well as from the guilt ? Do 
I love Christ, his Father, his saints, his words and ways ? 
This is the way to prove we are elect. 

Wherefore, sinner, when Satan or thine own heart seeks 
to puzzle thee with election, say thou, "I cannot attend 
to talk of this point now ; but stay till I know that I am 
called of God to the fellowship of his Son, and then I will 
show you that I am elect, and that my name is written in 
the hook of life." 

If poor distressed souls would observe this order, they 
might save themselves the trouble of an unprofitable labor 
under these unreasonable and soul-sinking doubts. 

Let us therefore, upon the sight of our wretchedness, 
fly and venturously leap into the arms of Christ, which 
are now as open to receive us into his bosom as they were 
when nailed to the cross. 



Let me tell thee, soul, for thy comfort, who art coming 
in to Christ panting and sighing as if thy heart would 
break, let me tell thee, soul, thou wouldst never have 
come to Christ if he had not first, by the virtue of his blood 
and intercession, sent into thy heart an earnest desire 
after Christ ; let me tell thee also, that it is his business 
to make intercession for thee, not only that thou mayest 
come in, but that thou mayest be preserved when thou art 
come in. 



They that are coming to Jesus Christ are ofttimes 
heartily afraid that Jesus Christ will not receive them. 

This word, " in nowise," cutteth the throat of all ob- 
jections; and it was dropped by the Lord Jesus for that 
very end, and to help the faith that is mixed with un- 
belief. 



160 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

But I am a great sinner, sayest thou. I will in nowise 
east out, says Christ. But I am an old sinner, sayest thou. 
I will in nowise cast out, says Christ. But I am a hard- 
hearted sinner, sayest thou. I will in nowise cast out, 
says Christ. But I have served Satan all my days, sayest 
thou. I will in nowise cast out, says Christ. But I have 
sinned against light, sayest thou. I will in nowise cast 
out, says Christ. But I have sinned against mercy, sayest 
thou. I will in nowise cast out, says Christ. But I have 
no good thing to bring with me, sayest thou. I will in 
nowise cast out, says Christ. 



FEARS IN COMING- TO CHRIST. 

1. This fear that Christ will not receive thee is for 
want of the knoivledge of Christ. Thou knowest but little 
of the grace and kindness that is in the heart of Christ ; 
thou knowest but little of the virtue and merit of his blood ; 
thou knowest but little of the willingness that is in his 
heart to save thee. Slowness of heart to believe flows 
from thy foolishness in the things of Christ ; this is evident 
to all that are acquainted with themselves, and are seeking 
after Jesus Christ. The more ignorance, the more unbe- 
lief; the more knowledge of Christ, the more faith. "They 
that know thy name, will put their trust in thee." 

2. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee may be 
also a consequence of thy earnest and strong desires after 
thy salvatio?i by him. For this I observe, that strong 
desires to have are attended with strong fears of missing. 
"What man most sets his heart upon, and what his desires 
are most after, he ofttimes most fears he shall not obtain. 
So, the ruler of the synagogue had a great desire that his 
daughter should live, and that desire was attended with 
fear that she would not. Therefore Christ saith unto him, 
" Be not afraid." 

Now thou fearest the sins of thy youth, the sins of thine 
old age, the sins of thy calling, the sins of thy Christian 



FEARS IN COMING TO CHRIST. 161 

duties, the sins of thine heart, or something ; thou thinkest 
something or other will alienate the heart and affections of 
Jesus Christ from thee. 

But he content. A little more knowledge of him will 
make thee take better heart ; thy earnest desires shall not 
be attended with such burning fears ; thou shalt hereafter 
say, "This is my infirmity." 

3. Thy fear that Christ will not receive thee, may 
arise from a sense of thy own ttnivorthiness. Thou seest 
what a poor, sorry, wretched, worthless creature thou art ; 
and seeing this, thou fearest Christ will not receive thee. 
"Alas," sayst thou, "I am the vilest of all men, a town- 
sinner, a ringleading sinner. I am not only a sinner my- 
self, but I have made others twofold worse the children 
of hell also. Besides, now I am under some awakenings 
and stirrings of mind after salvation, even now I find my 
heart rebellious, carnal, hard, treacherous, desperate, prone 
to unbelief, to despair ; it forgetteth the word, it wander- 
eth, it runneth to the ends of the earth. There is not, 
I am persuaded, one in all the world that hath such a 
desperate wicked heart as mine is. My soul is careless 
to do good ; but none more earnest to do that which is 
evil. 

"Can such a one as I am live in glory ? Can a holy, a 
just, and a righteous G-od think, with honor to his name, of 
saving such a vile creature as I am ? Saved I would be ; 
and who is there that would not, were he in my condition ? 
Indeed I wonder at the madness and folly of others, when 
I see them leap and skip so carelessly about the mouth of 
hell. Bold sinner, how darest thou tempt God by laugh- 
ing at the breach of his holy law ? But, alas, they are 
not so bad one way, but I am worse another ; I wish my- 
self were any body but myself. And yet, here again I 
know not what to wish. When I see such as I believe are 
coming to Jesus Christ, Oh I bless them. But I am con- 
founded in myself, to see how unlike I am to a very good 



162 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

many in the world. They can hear, read, pray, remember, 
repent, be humble, and do every thing better than so vile 
a wretch as I." 

Thus the sense of unworthiness creates and heightens 
fears in the hearts of them that are coming to Jesus Christ. 
But indeed it should not, for who needs the physician but 
the sick ? Or whom did Christ come into the world to 
save, but the chief of sinners ? Wherefore, the more thou 
seest thy sins, the faster fly thou to Jesus Christ. As it is 
with the man that carrieth his broken arm in a sling to 
the bonesetter, still, as he thinks of his broken arm, and 
as he feels the pain and anguish, he hastens his pace to 
the man. And if Satan meets thee, and asketh, "Whither 
goest thou?" tell him thou art maimed, and art going to 
the Lord Jesus. If he objects thine own unworthiness, tell 
him, that even as the sick seeketh the physician ; as he 
that hath broken bones seeks him that can set them ; so 
thou art going to Jesus Christ for healing for thy sin-sick 
soul. 

But it ofttimes happeneth to him that flies for his life, 
he despairs of escaping, and therefore delivers himself up 
into the hand of the pursuer. But up, up, sinner ; be of 
good cheer ; Christ came to save the unworthy one. Be 
not faithless, but believing. Come away, man. The Lord 
Jesus calls thee, saying, "And him that cometh to me, I 
will in nowise cast out." 

4. Thy fear that Christ will not receive thee, may arise 
from a sense of the exceeding mercy of being saved. Be- 
sides, the Holy Ghost hath a way to greaten heavenly 
things to the understanding of the coming sinner ; yea, 
and at the same time to greaten, too, the sin and unworthi- 
ness of that sinner. Now, the soul staggering by wonders, 
saying, "What! to be made like angels, like Christ; to 
live in eternal bliss, joy, and felicity ! This is for angels, 
and for them that can walk like angels." 

Thus doth the greatness of the things desired quite 



FEARS IN COMING TO CHRIST. 163 

dash and overthrow the mind of the desire. "0, it is too 
big, it is too big, it is too great a mercy." 

But, coming sinner, let me reason with thee. Thou 
say est it is too big, too great. Well, will things that are 
less satisfy thy soul ? Will a less thing than heaven, than 
glory and eternal life, answer thy desires ? " No, nothing 
less. Yet I fear they are too big, and too good for me even 
to obtain." Well, as big and as good as they are, God giv- 
eth them to such as thou. They are not too big for God 
to give ; no. not too big to give freely. Be content ; let 
God give like himself; he is that eternal God, and giveth 
like himself. When kings give, they do not use to give as 
poor men do. Now, God is a great King ; let him give like 
a king ; nay, let him give like himself, and do thou receive 
like thyself. He has all, and thou hast nothing. 

5. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee, may 
arise from thine oiv?i folly in inventing, yea, in thy chalk- 
ing out to God a way to bring thee home to Jesus Christ. 
Some souls that are coming to Jesus Christ are great tor- 
mentors of themselves upon this account. They conclude 
that if their coming to Jesus Christ is right, they must 
needs be brought home thus and thus. 

Now, I say, if God brings thee to Christ, and not by 
the way that thou hast appointed, then thou art at a loss ; 
and for thy being at a loss, thou mayest thank thyself. 
God hath more ways than thou knowest of to bring a 
sinner to Jesus Christ ; but he will not give thee before- 
hand an account by which of them he will bring thee to 
Christ. 

Sometimes he hath his ways in the whirlwind, but 
sometimes the Lord is not there. 

If God will deal more gently with thee than with 
others of his children, grudge not at it ; refuse not the 
waters that go softly, lest he bring up to thee the waters 
of the rivers strong and many, even these two smoking 
firebrands, the devil and guilt of sin. He saith to Peter, 



164 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

" Follow me;" and what thunder did Zaccheus hear or 
see ? " Zaccheus, come dow^n," said Christ ; and he came 
down, says Luke, and received him joyfully. 

But had Peter or Zaccheus made the objection that 
thou hast made — looking for a heavy load of guilt, or fear- 
ful-temptations of Satan — and directed the Spirit of the 
Lord as thou hast done, they might have looked long 
enough before they had found themselves coming to Jesus 
Christ. 

Poor creature ! Thou criest, " If I w T ere tempted, I 
could come faster and with more confidence to Jesus 
Christ." Thou sayest thou knowest not what. What says 
Job ? "Withdraw thy hand far from me, and let not thy 
dread make me afraid : then call thou, and I will answer ; 
or let me speak, and answer thou me." Job 13 : 21, 22. 
It is not the over-heavy load of sin, but the discovery of 
mercy — not the roaring of the devil, but the drawing of 
the Father, that makes a man come to Jesus Christ, I 
myself know all these things. 

True, sometimes they that come to Jesus Christ, come 
the way that thou desirest — the loading, tempted way ; but 
the Lord also leads some by the waters of comfort. If I 
was to choose when to go a long journey, to wit, whether 
I would go it in the dead of winter or in the pleasant 
spring — though if it was a very profitable journey, as that 
of coming to Christ is, I would choose to go it through fire 
and water before I would lose the benefit — but I say, if I 
might choose the time, I would choose to go in the pleas- 
ant spring, because the way would be more delightsome, 
the days longer and warmer, the nights shorter, and not 
so cold. 

Trouble not thyself, coming sinner : if thou seest thy 
lost condition by original and actual sin ; if thou seest thy 
need of the spotless righteousness of Jesus Christ ; if thou 
art willing to be found in him, and to take up thy cross 
and follow him, then pray for a fair wind and good weather, 



FEARS IN COMING- TO CHRIST. 165 

and come away. Stick no longer in a muse and doubt 
about things, but come away to Jesus Christ. 

6. Thy fears that Christ will not receive thee may 
arise from those decays that thoiifindest in thy soul, even 
while thou art coming to him. Some, even as they are 
coming to Jesus Christ, do find themselves grow worse and 
worse. To explain myself: there is such a one coming to 
Jesus Christ, who, when he first began to look out after 
him, was sensible, affectionate, and broken in spirit, but 
now is grown dark, senseless, hard-hearted, and inclining 
to neglect spiritual duties. Besides, he now finds in him- 
self inclinations to unbelief, atheism, blasphemy, and the 
like ; now, he finds he cannot tremble at God's word, his 
judgments, nor the apprehension of hell-fire ; neither can 
he, as he thinketh, be sorry for these things. 

This man is in the wilderness among wild beasts. Here 
he sees a bear, there a lion, yonder a leopard, a wolf, a 
dragon. Devils of all sorts, doubts of all sorts, fears of all 
sorts haunt and molest his soul. This man feeleth the 
infirmity of his flesh ; he findeth a proneness in himself to 
be desperate. Now he chides with God, flings and tum- 
bles like a wild bull in a net, and still the guilt of all 
returns upon himself to the crushing of him to pieces. 
Yet he feeleth his heart so hard that he can find, as he 
thinks, no kindness under any of his miscarriages. Now, 
he is a lump of confusion in his own eyes, whose spirit 
and actions are without order. " Now, I see I am lost," 
says the sinner ; " this is not coming to Jesus Christ ; such 
a desperately hard and wretched heart as mine is, cannot 
be a gracious one," saith the sinner. And bid such a one 
be better, he says, " I cannot ; no, I cannot." 

Question. But what will you say to a soul in this con- 
dition ? 

Answer. I will say, that temptations have attended 
the best of God's people ; I will say that temptations come 
to do us good ; and I will say also, that there is a differ- 



166 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ence betwixt growing worse and worse, and thy seeing 
more clearly how bad thou art. 

There is a man of an ill-favored countenance who hath 
too high a conceit of his beauty, and wanting the benefit 
of a glass, he still stands in his own conceit. At last a 
limner is sent unto him, who draweth his ill-favored face 
to the life. Now, looking thereon, he begins to be con- 
vinced that he is not half so handsome as he thought he 
was. Coming sinner, thy temptations are these painters ; 
they have drawn out thy ill-favored heart to the life, and 
have set it before thine eyes, and now thou seest how ill- 
favored thou art. 

Some that are coming to Christ cannot be persuaded, 
until the temptation comes, that they are so vile as the 
scripture saith they are. True, they see so much of their 
wretchedness as to drive them to Christ. But there is an 
over and above of wickedness which they see not. Peter 
little thought that he had had in his heart cursing and 
swearing and lying, and an inclination to deny his Master, 
before the temptation came ; but when that indeed came 
upon him, then he found it there to his sorrow. 

It may be that thy graces must be tried in the fire, that 
that rust which cleaveth to them may be taken away, and 
themselves proved, both before angels and devils, to be far 
better than gold that perisheth. It may be also, that thy 
graces are to receive special praises and honor and glory, 
at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to judgment, for all 
the exploits that thou hast acted by them against hell and 
its infernal crew, in the day of thy temptation. 

But to conclude this, put the worst to the worst, and 
then things will be bad enough : suppose that thou art to 
this day without the grace of God ; yet thou art but a mis- 
erable creature, a sinner that has need of a blessed Saviour ; 
and the text presents thee with one as good and kind as 
heart can wish, who also for thy encouragement saith, " And 
him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out." 



MERCY'S EXPERIENCE. 167 

MERCY'S EXPERIENCE. 

So the Interpreter addressed him to Mercy, and said 
unto her, "And what moved thee to come hither, sweet- 
heart ?" 

Then Mercy "blushed and trembled, and for a while 
continued silent. 

Then said he, " Be not afraid ; only believe, and speak 
thy mind." 

Then she began, and said, " Truly, sir, my want of 
experience is that which makes me covet to be in silence, 
and that also that filleth me with fears of coming short at 
last. I cannot tell of visions and dreams as my friend 
Christiana can. nor know I what it is to mourn for my 
refusing of the counsel of those that were good rela- 
tions." 

Interpreter. " What was it then, dear heart, that 
hath prevailed with thee to do as thou hast done ?" 

Mercy. "Why, when our friend here was packing up 
to be gone from our town, [the city of Destruction,] I and 
another went accidentally to see her. So we knocked at 
the door and went in. When we were within, and seeing 
what she was doing, we asked her what she meant. She 
said she was sent for to go to her husband ; and then she 
up and told us how she had seen him in a dream, dwelling 
in a curious place, among immortals, wearing a crown, 
playing upon a harp, eating and drinking at his Prince's 
table, and singing praises to him for the bringing him 
thither. Now methought, while she was telling these 
things unto us, my heart burned within me. And I said 
in my heart, ' If this be true, I will leave my father and 
my mother, and the land of my nativity, and will, if I may, 
go along with Christiana.' 

" So I asked her further of the truth of these things, 
and if she would let me go with her ; for I saw now that 
there was no dwelling, but with the danger of ruin, any 
longer in our town. But yet I came away with a heavy 



168 RICHES OF BUNYAK. 

heart ; not for that I was unwilling to come away, but for 
that so many of my relations were left behind. And I am 
come with all my heart, and will, if I may, go with Chris- 
tiana to her husband and his King." 

Interpreter, " Thy setting out is good, for thou hast 
given credit to the truth ; thou art a Ruth, who did, for 
the love she bare to Naomi and to the Lord her God, leave 
father and mother, and the land of her nativity, to come 
out and go with a people that she knew not before. 'The 
Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee 
of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art 
come to trust.' " 



FEARS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS OF THE AWAK- 
ENED. 

Some men are blood-red sinners, crimson sinners, sinners 
of a double dye ; dipped and dipped again before they come 
to Jesus Christ. Art thou that readest these lines such a 
one ? Speak out, man. Art thou such a one ? and art thou 
now coming to Jesus Christ for the mercy of justification, 
that thou mightest be made white in his blood and be cov- 
ered with his righteousness ? Fear not ; forasmuch as this 
thy coming betokeneth that thou art of the number of them 
that the Father hath given to Christ ; for he will in no wise 
cast thee out. "Come now," saith Christ, "and let us 
reason together : though your sins be as scarlet, they shall 
be as white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they 
shall be as wool." 



I might tell you of the contests and battles that great 
sinners at their conversion are engaged in, wherein they 
find the besettings of Satan above any other of the saints. 
At which time Satan assaults the soul with darkness, fears, 
frightful thoughts of apparitions ; now they sweat, pant, cry 
out, and struggle for life. , 

The angels now come down to behold the sight, and 



FEARS AND ENCOURAGEMENTS. 169 

rejoice to see a bit of dust and ashes overcome principal- 
ities, and powers, and mights, and dominions. 

But when these come to be a little settled, they are 
prepared for helping others, and are great comforts unto 
them. Their great sins give great encouragement to the 
devil to assault them ; and by these temptations Christ 
takes advantage to make them the more helpful to the 
churches. 

The biggest sinner, when he is converted and comes 
into the church, says to them all by his very coming in, 
" Behold me, all you that are men and women of a low 
and timorous spirit, you whose hearts are narrow — for that 
you have never had the advantage to know, because your 
sins are few, the largeness of the grace of God — behold, I 
say, in me the exceeding riches of his grace. I am a pat- 
tern set forth before your faces, on whom you may look 
and take heart." Christ Jesus makes of the biggest sin- 
ners bearers and supporters to the rest. 



Christ saved the thief, to encourage thieves to come 
to him for mercy ; he saved Magdalen, to encourage other 
Magdalens to come to him for mercy; he saved Saul, to 
encourage Sauls to come to him for mercy ; and this Paul 
himself doth say : " For this cause," saith he, " I obtained 
mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show forth all 
long-suffering for a pattern to them which should hereafter 
believe on him to life everlasting." 



When Christ was crucified and hanged up between the 
earth and heavens, there were two thieves crucified with 
him ; and behold, he lays hold of one of them and will 
have him away with him to glory. Was not this a strange 
act and a display of unthought of grace ? Were there none 
but thieves there, or were the rest of that company out of 
his reach ? Could he not, think you, have stooped from 
the cross to the ground, and have laid hold of some honester 

Riches of Bunyau. O 



170 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

man, if he would? Yes, doubtless. 0, but then he would 
not have displayed his grace, nor have so pursued his own 
designs, namely, to get himself a praise and a name ; but 
now he has done it to purpose. For who that shall read 
this story but must confess that the Son of God is full of 
grace ? for a proof of the riches thereof he left behind him, 
when upon the cross he took the thief away with him to 
glory. 



I have one thing more to offer for thy encouragement, 
who deemest thyself one of the biggest sinners ; and that 
is, thou art as it were called by thy name, in the first place 
to come in for mercy. Thou man of Jerusalem, Luke 
24 : 47, hearken to thy call : men do so in courts of judi- 
cature, and presently cry out, " Here, sir ;" and then shoul- 
der and crowd, and say," Pray give way, I am called into 
the court." Why, this is thy case, thou great, thou Jeru- 
salem sinner ; be of good cheer, he calleth thee. Why 
sittest thou still? Arise. Why standest thou still? Come, 
man, thy call should give thee authority to come. "Begin 
at Jerusalem," is thy call and authority to come ; where- 
fore up and shoulder it, man ; say, " Stand away, devil, 
Christ calls me ; stand away, unbelief, Christ calls me ; 
stand away, all ye discouraging apprehensions, for my 
Saviour calls me to him to receive of his mercy." Men 
will do thus, as I said, in courts below ; and why shouldst 
not thou approach thus to the courts above ? The Jeru- 
salem sinner is first in thought, first in commission, first 
in the record of names ; and therefore should give attend- 
ance with expectation that he is first to receive mercy of 
God. 

Is not this an encouragement to the biggest sinners to 
make their application to Christ for mercy ? " Come unto 
me, all ye that labor and arc heavy laden," doth also con- 
firm this thing ; that is, that the biggest sinner and he that 
hath the biggest burden, is lie who is first invited. Christ 



DESPAIR OF MERCY UNREASONABLE. 1/1 

pointeth over the heads of thousands as he sits on the throne 
of grace, directly to such a man, and says, " Bring in hither 
the maimed, the halt, and the blind ; let the Jerusalem 
sinner that stands there behind, come to me." Wherefore, 
since Christ says to thee, Come, let the angels make a lane 
and let all men give place, that the Jerusalem sinner may 
come to Christ for mercy. 



DESPAIR OF MERCY UNREASONABLE. 

Would Jesus Christ have mercy offered, in the first 
place, to the biggest sinners ? Then this shows how un- 
reasonable a thing it is for men to despair of mercy. 

I am concerned only with the despair of those that 
would be saved, but are too strongly borne down with the 
burden of their sins. I say, therefore, to thee that art 
thus, And why despair ? Thy despair, if it was reasona- 
ble, should flow from thee because found in the land that 
is beyond the grave, or because thou certainly knowest that 
Christ will not or cannot save thee. 

But for the first, thou art yet in the land, of the living ; 
and for the second, thou hast ground to believe quite the 
contrary. Christ is able to save to the uttermost them that 
come to God by him ; and if he were not willing, he would 
not have commanded that mercy, in the first place, should 
be offered to the biggest sinners. Besides, he hath said, 
"And let him that is athirst come, and whosoever will, 
let him take the water of life freely" — that is, with all my 
heart. What ground, now, is here for despair ? If thou 
say est, " The number and burden of my sins ;" I answer, 
Nay ; that is rather a ground for faith ; because such a 
one, above all others, is invited by Christ to come unto 
him, yea, promised rest and forgiveness, if he come. Matt. 
11 : 28. What ground, then, to despair? Verily, none at 
all. Thy despair, then, is a thing unreasonable, and with- 
out footing in the word. 

" But I have no experience of God's love ; God has 



172 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

given me no comfort or ground of hope, though I have 
waited upon him for it many a day." 

Thou hast experience of God's love, in that he has 
opened thine eyes to see thy sins, and in that he has given 
thee desires to be saved by Jesus Christ. For by thy sense 
of sin, thou art made to see thy poverty of spirit, and that 
has laid thee under a sure ground to hope that heaven 
shall be thine hereafter. 

Also, thy desires to be saved by Christ have put thee 
under another promise, Matt. 5:3,6; so there are two to 
hold thee up in them, though thy present burden be never 
so heavy. As for what thou say est as to God's silence to 
thee, perhaps he has spoken to thee once or twice already, 
but thou hast not perceived it. Job 33 : 14, 15. 

Besides, God says, " They that wait upon the Lord 
shall renew their strength ; they shall mount up with 
wings as eagles ;" but perhaps it may be long first. " I 
waited patiently," says David, "I sought the Lord ;" and 
at length his cry was heard : wherefore, he bids his soul 
wait on God, and says, "For it is good" so to do "before 
thy saints." Psalm 40 : 1 ; 52 : 9 ; 62 : 5. 

And what if thou waitest upon God all thy days ? Is 
it below thee ? And what if God will cross his book and 
blot out the handwriting that is against thee, and not let 
thee know it as yet ? Is it fit to say unto God, Thou art 
hard-hearted ? Despair not ; thou hast no ground to de- 
spair, so long as thou livest in this world. It is a sin to 
begin to despair before one sets his foot over the threshold 
of hell-gates. For them that are there, let them despair, 
and spare not ; but as for thee, thou hast no ground to do 
it. What, despair of bread in a land that is full of corn ; 
despair of mercy, when our God is full of mercy ; despair 
of mercy, when God goes about by his ministers, beseech- 
ing sinners to be reconciled to him ? 

Thou scrupulous fool, where canst thou find that God 
was ever false to his promise, or that he ever deceived the 



DESPAIR OF MERCY UNREASONABLE. 173 

soul that ventured itself upon him ? He often calls upon 
sinners to trust him, though they walk in darkness, and 
have no light. Isa. 50 : 10. They have his promise and 
oath for their salvation, that flee for refuge to the hope set 
before them. 

Despair, when we have a God of mercy and a redeem- 
ing Christ alive ' For shame, forbear ; let them despair 
that dwell where there is no God, and that are confined to 
those chambers of death which can be reached by no re- 
demption. 

A living man despair, when he is chid for murmuring 
and complaining! Lam. 3:39. Oh, so long as we are 
where promises swarm, where mercy is proclaimed, where 
grace reigns, and where Jerusalem sinners are privileged 
with the first offer of mercy, it is a base thing to despair. 

Despair undervalues the promise, undervalues the invi- 
tation, undervalues the proffer of grace. Despair under- 
values the ability of God the Father, and the redeeming 
blood of Christ his Son. Oh, unreasonable despair ! 

Despair makes man God's judge ; it is a controller of 
the promise, a contradicter of Christ in his large offers of 
mercy ; and one that undertakes to make unbelief the 
great manager of our reason and judgment, in determining 
about what God can and will do for sinners. 

Despair ! it is the devil's fellow, the devil's master ; 
yea, the chains with which he is captivated, and held un- 
der darkness for ever : and to give way thereto, in a land, 
in a state and time that flows with milk and honey, is an 
uncomely thing. 

I would say to my soul, my soul, this is not the 
place of despair ; this is not the time to despair in. As 
long as mine eyes can find a promise in the Bible, as long 
as there is a moment left me of breath or life in this world, 
so long will I wait or look for mercy, so long will I fight 
against unbelief and despair. 

This is the way to honor God and Christ ; this is the 



174 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

way to set the crown on the promise ; this is the way to 
welcome the invitation and the inviter ; and this is the 
way to thrust thyself under the shelter and protection of 
the word of grace. Never despair, so long as our text is 
alive ; for that doth sound it out, that mercy by Christ is 
offered in the first place to the biggest sinner. 



Let none despair, let none presume : let none despair, 
that are sorry for their sins and would be saved by Jesus 
Christ ; let none presume that abide in the liking of their 
sins, though they seem to know the exceeding grace of 
Christ ; for though the doors stand wide open for the recep- 
tion of the penitent, yet they are fast enough barred and 
bolted against the presumptuous sinner. Be not deceived, 
God is not mocked ; whatsoever a man sows, that shall he 
also reap. It cannot be that God should be wheedled out 
of his mercy, or prevailed upon by lips of dissimulation ; he 
knows them that trust in him, and that sincerely come to 
him by Christ for mercy. 

It is, then, not the abundance of sins committed, but 
the not coming heartily to God by Christ for mercy, that 
shuts men out of doors. 



Is it so, that they that are coming to Jesus Christ, are 
ofttimes heartily afraid that he will not receive them ? 
Then this should teach old Christians to pity and pray for 
young comers. You know the heart of a stranger, for you 
yourselves were strangers in the land of Egypt. You 
know the fears and doubts and terrors that take hold of 
them, for they sometimes took hold of you. "Wherefore, 
pity them, pray for them, encourage them; they need all 
this. 



THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 
That Jesus Christ, by what he has done, has paid full 
price to God for sinners and obtained eternal redemption 



THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL. 175 

for them, is evident, if you consider how the preaching 
thereof has heen from that time to this a mighty conqueror 
over all kinds of sinners. What nation, what people, what 
kind of sinners have not heen subdued by the preaching of 
a crucified Christ ? He upon the white horse with his bow 
and his crown has conquered, doth conquer, and goeth forth 
yet conquering and to conquer. 

The doctrine of forgiveness of sin conquered his very 
murderers. They could not withstand the grace ; those 
bloody ones that would kill him whatever it cost them, 
could stand no longer, but received his doctrine, fell into 
his bosom, and obtained the salvation which is in Christ 
Jesus. "They shall look upon him whom they have 
pierced, and mourn for him as one mourneth for his only 
son, and they shall be in bitterness for him as one is in 
bitterness for his first-born." Now was the scripture emi- 
nently fulfilled, when the kindness of a crucified Christ 
broke to pieces the hearts of them that had before been his 
betrayers and murderers. Now was there a great mourn- 
ing in Jerusalem ; now was there wailing and lamentation, 
mixed with joy and rejoicing. 

Though Paul was mad, exceeding mad against Jesus 
Christ of Nazareth, seeking to put out his name from under 
heaven ; yet the voice from heaven, " I am Jesus, I am the 
Saviour," how did it conquer him, make him throw down 
his arms, fall down at Christ's feet, and accept of the for- 
giveness of sins freely by grace, through redemption by 
faith in his blood. 

How was the sturdy jailer overcome by a promise of 
forgiveness of sins by faith in Jesus Christ. It stopped his 
hand of self-murder, it eased him of the gnawings of a 
guilty conscience and fears of hell-fire, and filled his soul 
with rejoicing in God. 

"What shall I say ? no man could as yet stand before, 
and not fall under, the revelation of the forgiveness of sins 
through a crucified Christ : as hanged, as dying, as accursed 



176 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

for sinners, he draws all men unto him, men of all sorts, 
of all degrees. 

Shall I add, how have men broken through all diffi- 
culties to Jesus, when he hath been discovered to them ! 
Neither lions, nor fires, nor sword, nor famine, nor naked- 
ness, nor peril; "neither death nor life; nor angels, nor 
principalities, nor powers ; nor things present, nor things to 
come ; nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall 
be able to separate us from the love of God which is in 
Christ Jesus our Lord." 



BUNYAN'S CONYEHSIOISr. . 
I speak by experience : I was one of these verminous 
ones, one of these great sin-breeders ; I infected all the 
youth of the town where I was born with all manner of 
youthful vanities. The neighbors counted me so ; my 
practice proved me so : wherefore Christ Jesus took me 
first, and taking me first, the contagion was much allayed 
all the town over. "When God made me sigh, they would 
hearken, and inquiringly say, "What is the matter with 
John ?" They also gave their various opinions of me ; but, 
as I said, sin cooled, and failed as to his full career. "When 
I went out to seek the bread of life, some of them would 
follow, and the rest be put into a muse at home. 



When it pleased the Lord to begin to instruct my soul, 
he found me one of the black sinners of the world ; he 
found me making a sport of oaths, and also of lies ; and 
many a soul-poisoning meal did I make out of divers 
lusts, as drinking, dancing, etc., with the wicked ones of 
the world. The Lord finding me in this condition, opened 
the glass of his law unto me, showing me so clearly my 
sins — both the greatness of them, and also how abominable 
they were in his sight — that I thought the very clouds were 
charged with the wrath of God, and ready to let fall the 
fire of his jealousy upon me ; yet for all this I was so wed- 



BUNYAN'S CONVERSION. 177 

ded to my sins, that I thought with myself, " I will have 
them, though I lose my soul," wretch that I was. But 
God, the great, the rich, the infinitely merciful God, did 
not take this advantage of my soul to cast me away ; but 
followed me still, and won my heart by giving me some 
understanding, not only of my miserable state which I was 
very sensible of, but also that there might be hopes of 
mercy ; taking away my love to lust, and placing in the 
room thereof a holy love to religion. Thus the Lord won 
my heart to some desire to hear the word, to grow a stran- 
ger to my old companions, and to accompany the people of 
God, giving me many sweet encouragements from several 
promises in the scriptures. But after this, the Lord won- 
derfully set my sins upon my conscience ; those sins espec- 
ially that I had committed since the first convictions : 
temptations also followed me very hard ; especially such 
as tended to make me question the way of salvation — 
whether Jesus Christ was the Saviour or not, and whether 
I had best to venture my soul upon him for salvation, or 
take some other course — and I continued a year and up- 
wards without any sound evidence as from God to my soul, 
touching salvation as it comes by Jesus Christ. But at 
the last, as I may say, when the set time was come, the 
Lord did set me down blessedly in the truth of the doctrine 
of Jesus Christ. 



About this time the state and happiness of these poor 
people at Bedford was thus, in a kind of a vision, presented 
to me. I saw as if they were on the sunny side of some 
high mountain, there refreshing themselves with the pleas- 
ant beams of the sun, whilst I was shivering and shrinking 
iu the cold, afflicted with frost, snow, and dark clouds. 
Meth ought also, between me and them I saw a wall that 
did compass about this mountain. Now, through this 
mountain my soul did greatly desire to pass ; concluding 
that if I could, I would even go into the very midst of 

8* 



178 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

them and there also comfort myself with the heat of 
their sun. 

About this wall I bethought myself to go again and 
again, still prying as I went, to see if I could find some way 
or passage by which I might enter therein ; but none could 
I find for some time : at the last, I saw as it were a nar- 
row gap, like a little door-way in the wall, through which 
I attempted to pass ; now the passage being very strait and 
narrow, I made many offers to get in, but all in vain, even 
until I was well-nigh quite beat out by striving to get in; 
at last, with great striving, methought I at first -did get in 
my head, and after that, by a sideling striving, my shoul- 
ders and my whole body ; then was I exceeding glad, and 
went and sat down in the midst of them, and so was com- 
forted with the light and heat of their sun. 

Now, this mountain and wall, etc., was thus made out 
to me : the mountain signified the church of the living 
God ; the sun that shone thereon, the comfortable shining 
of his merciful face on them that were therein ; the wall 
I thought was that which did make separation betwixt 
the Christians and the world ; and the gap which was in 
the wall, I thought was Jesus Christ, who is the way to 
God the Father. But forasmuch as the passage was won- 
derful narrow, even so narrow that I could not but with 
great difficulty enter in thereat, it showed me that none 
could enter into life but those that were in downright ear- 
nest, and unless also they left that wicked world behind 
them ; for here was only room for body and soul, but not 
for body and soul and sin. 

This resemblance abode upon my spirit many days ; all 
which time I saw myself in a forlorn and sad condition, 
but yet was provoked to a vehement hunger and desire to 
be one of that number that did sit in the sunshine ; now 
also would I pray wherever I was, whether at home or 
abroad, in house or field ; and would also often, with lift- 
ing up of heart, sing that of the fifty-first Psalm, "0 



BUNYAN'S CONVERSION. 179 

Lord, consider my distress;" for as yet I knew not where 
I was. 

Neither as yet could I attain to any comfortable per- 
suasion that I had faith in Christ ; but instead of having 
satisfaction here, I began to find my soul to be assaulted 
with fresh doubts about my future happiness ; especially 
with such as these : "Whether I was elected ;" " But how 
if the day of grace should be past and gone?" 



Now was I in great distress, thinking in very deed 
that this might well be so : wherefore I went up and down 
bemoaning my sad condition ; counting myself far worse 
than a thousand fools for standing off thus long, and spend- 
ing so many years in sin as I had done ; still crying out, 
'•' that I had turned sooner ! that I had turned seven 
years ago !" It made me also angry with myself to think 
that I should have no more wit but to trifle away my time 
till my soul and heaven were lost. 

But when I had been long vexed with this fear, and 
was scarce able to take one step more, these words broke in 
upon my mind : " Compel them to come in, that my house 
may be filled; and yet there is room." These words, but 
especially these, " and yet there is room," were sweet words 
to me ; for truly I thought that by them I saw there was 
place enough in heaven for me, and moreover, that when 
the Lord Jesus spake these words, he did then think of 
me ; and that he knowing that the time would come that 
I should be afflicted with fear that there was no place left 
for me in his bosom, did before speak this word and leave 
it upon record, that I might find help thereby against this 
vile temptation. 



How lovely now in my eyes were all those that I 
thought to be converted men and women. They shone, 
they walked like a people that carried the broad seal of 
heaven about them. Oh, I saw the lot was fallen to them 



180 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

in pleasant places, and they had a goodly heritage. But 
that which made me sick, was that of Christ in Mark 
3 : 13, " He went up into a mountain, and called unto him 
whom he would ; and they came unto him." This scrip- 
ture made me faint and fear, yet it kindled fire in my soul. 
That which made me fear was this, lest Christ should 
have no liking to me ; for he called " whom he would." 
But Oh, the glory that I saw in that condition did still so 
engage my heart, that I could seldom read of any that 
Christ did call; but I presently wished, "Would I had 
been in their clothes ; would I had been born Peter ; would 
I had been born John ; or would I had been by and had 
heard him when he called them, how would I have cried, 
'0 Lord, call me also.' " But Oh, I feared he would not 
call me. 



FEARS ABOUT ELECTION. 

Before thou canst know whether thou art elected, thou 
must believe in Jesus Christ so really, that by thy faith 
there shall be life begotten in thy soul — life from the con- 
demning of the law ; life from the guilt of sin : life over 
its filth ; life also to walk with God in his Son and ways ; 
the life of love to God the Father, to Jesus Christ his Son, 
to his saints, and to his ways, because they are holy, harm- 
less, and altogether contrary to iniquity. 



YOUNG CONVERTS. 
In young converts, hope and distrust, or a degree of 
despair, do work and answer one another as doth the noise 
of the balance of the watch in the pocket. Life and death 
is always the motion of the mind then ; and this noise con- 
tinues until faith is stronger grown, and until the soul is 
better acquainted with the methods and ways of God with 
a sinner. Yea, was but a carnal man in a convert's heart, 
and could see, he should discern these two, to wit, hope 



YOUNG- CONVERTS. 181 

and fear, to have a continual motion in the soul — wrestling 
and opposing one another as do light and darkness, in 
striving for the victory. 

And hence it is that you find such people so fickle and 
uncertain in their spirits ; now on the mount, then in the 
valleys ; now in the sunshine, then in the shade ; now 
warm, then frozen ; now "bonny and blithe, then in a mo- 
ment pensive and sad, as thinking of a portion nowhere 
but in hell. 



In the general, all the days of our pilgrimage here are 
evil ; yea, every day has a sufficiency of evil in it to de- 
stroy the best saint that breatheth, were it not for the 
grace of God. But there are also particular specious 
times, times more eminently dangerous and hazardous 
unto saints. As, 

1 . There are their young days, the days of their youth 
and childhood in grace. This day is usually attended with 
much evil towards him or them that are asking the way 
to Zion with their faces thitherward. Now the devil has 
lost a sinner ; there is a captive has broke prison, and one 
run away from his master ; now hell seems to be awakened 
from sleep ; the devils are come out, they roar, and roaring 
they seek to recover their runaway ; they tempt him, 
threaten him, flatter him, stigmatize him, throw dust in 
his eyes, poison him with errors, spoil him while he is upon 
the potter's wheel ; any thing to keep him from coming to 
Jesus Christ. And is not this a needy time ? Doth not 
such a one want abundance of grace ? Is it not of abso- 
lute necessity that thou, if thou art the man thus beset, 
shouldst ply it at the throne of grace for mercy and grace 
to keep thee in such a time of need as this ? 

To want a spirit of prayer now, is as much as thy life 
is worth. Oh, therefore, you that know what I say, you 
that are broke loose from hell, that are fled for refuge to 
lay hold on the hope set before you, and that do hear the 



182 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

lion roar after you, and that are kept awake with the con- 
tinual voice of his chinking chain, cry as you fly ; yea, the 
promise is, that they that come to God with weeping, with 
supplication, he will lead them. 

"Well, this is one needy time ; now thy hedge is low, 
now thy branch is tender, now thou art but in the bud. 
Pray that thou be not marred in the potter's hand. 



XII. THE CHRISTIAN DESCRIBED. 

HAPPINESS OF THE CHRISTIAN. 

how happy is he who is not only a visible, but also 
an invisible saint ! He shall not be blotted out the book 
of God's eternal grace and mercy. 



DIG-NITY OF THE CHRISTIAN. 

There are a generation of men in the world, that count 
themselves men of the largest capacities, when yet the 
greatest of their desires lift themselves no higher than to 
things below. If they can with their net of craft and 
policy encompass a bulky lump of earth, Oh, what a treas- 
ure have they engrossed to themselves ! 

Meanwhile, the man who comes to God by Christ, has 
laid siege to heaven, has found out the way to get into the 
city, and is resolved, in and by God's help, to make that 
his own. Earth is a drossy thing in this man's account ; 
earthly greatness and splendors are but like vanishing bub- 
bles in this man's esteem. None but God as the end of 
his desires, none but Christ as the means to accomplish this 
his end, are things counted great by this man. No com- 
pany now is acceptable to this man, but the Spirit of God, 
Christ, angels and saints, as fellow-heirs with himself. 
All other men and things, he deals with as strangers and 
pilgrims were wont to do. This man's mind soars higher 



DIGNITY OF THE CHRISTIAN. 183 

than the eagle, or stork of the heavens. He is for musing 
about things that are above and their glory, and for think- 
ing what shall come to pass hereafter. 



Is it so. that coming to Ohrist is by the Father ? Then 
this should teach us to set a high esteem upon them that 
are indeed coming to Jesus Christ, for the sake of him by 
virtue of whose grace they are made to come to Jesus 
Christ. 

We see that when men, by the help of human abilities, 
do arrive at the knowledge of, and bring to pass that 
which, when done, is a wonder to the world, how he that 
did it is esteemed and commended. Yea, how are his wits, 
parts, industry, and unweariedness in all, admired ; and 
yet the man, as to this, is but of the world ; and his work 
the effect of natural ability. The things also attained by 
him, end in vanity and vexation of spirit. Further, per- 
haps, in the pursuit of these his achievements, he sins 
against God, wastes his time vainly, and at long run loses 
his soul by neglecting of better things. Yet he is ad- 
mired. 

But, I say, if this man's parts, labor, diligence, and the 
like, will bring him to such esteem in the world, what es- 
teem should we have of such a one that is, by the gift, 
promise, and power of God, coming to Jesus Christ ? 

1. This is the man with whom God is, in whom God 
works and walks — a man, whose motion is governed and 
steered by the mighty hand of God, and the effectual work- 
ing of his power. Here is a man ! 

2. This man, by the power of God's might which 
worketh in him, is able to cast a whole world behind 
him, with all the lusts and pleasures of it, and to charge 
through all the difficulties that men and devils can set 
against him. Here is a man ! 

3. This man is travelling "to mount Zion, the heav- 
enly Jerusalem, the city of the living God ; and to an in- 



184 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

numerable company of angels, and the spirits of just men 
made perfect, to God the judge of all, and to Jesus." Here 
is a man ! 

4. This man can look upon death with comfort, can 
laugh at destruction when it cometh, and long to hear the 
sound of the last trump, and to see the Judge coming in 
the clouds of heaven. Here is a man, indeed ! 



"We pass through a threefold state from nature to glory ; 
the state of grace in this life, the state of felicity in para- 
dise, and our state in glory after the resurrection. 



They are all kings that go to that world, and so shall 
be proclaimed there. They shall also be crowned with 
crowns, and they shall wear crowns of life and glory, 
crowns of everlasting joy, crowns of loving-kindness. 

The coming man, the man that comes to God by Christ, 
if his way, all his way thither wefe strewed with burning 
coals, would choose, God helping him, to tread that path 
rather than to have his portion with them that perish. 



" The angel of the Lord encampeth about them that 
fear him, and delivereth them." This, therefore, is a glo- 
rious privilege of the men that fear the Lord. Alas, they 
are some of them so mean, that they are counted not worth 
taking notice of by the high ones of the world ; but their 
betters do respect them : the angels of God count not them- 
selves too good to attend on them, and camp about them to 
deliver them. This then is the man that hath his angel 
to wait on him, even he that feareth the Lord. 



It is said, that when the church is " fair as the sun, and 
clear as the moon," she is " terrible as an army with ban- 
ners." The presence of godly Samuel made the elders of 
Bethlehem tremble ; yea, when Elisha was sought for by 
the king of Syria, he durst not engage him but with 



FEEBLENESS OF THE CHRISTIAN. 185 

chariots and horses, a heavy host. Godliness is a won- 
derful thing ; it commandeth reverence, and the stooping 
of the spirit, even of the ungodly ones. 

Godliness puts such a majesty and dread upon the pro- 
fessors of it, that their enemies are afraid of them ; yea, 
even then when they rage against them, and lay heavy 
afflictions upon them. It is marvellous to see in what fear 
the ungodly are, even of godly men and godliness ; in that 
they stir up the mighty, make edicts against them, yea, and 
Vaise up armies, and what else can be imagined, to sup- 
press them ; w T hile the persons thus opposed, if you consider 
them as to their state and capacity in this world, are the 
most inconsiderable — but as a dead dog or a flea. 0, but 
they are clothed with godliness ; the image and presence 
of God is upon them. This makes the beasts of this world 
afraid. " One of you shall chase a thousand." 



The ornament and beauty of this lower world, next to 
God and his wonders, are the men that spangle and shine 
in godliness. 



THE FAMILY IN HEAVEN AND EARTH. 
" The whole family in heaven and earth." The differ- 
ence betwixt us and them is, not that we are really two, 
but one body in Christ, in divers places. True, we are be- 
low stairs, and they above ; they in their holiday, and we 
in our working-day clothes ; they in harbor, but we in the 
storm ; they at rest, but we in the wilderness ; they sing- 
ing, as crowned with joy, we crying, as crowned with 
thorns. But we are all of one house, one family, and are 
all the children of one Father. 



FEEBLENESS OF THE CHRISTIAN. 
Israel, as the child of God, is a pitiful thing of him- 
self; one that is full of weaknesses, infirmities, and defects, 



186 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

should we speak nothing of his transgressions. He that is 
to be attended with so many mercies, absolutely necessary 
mercies, must needs be in himself a poor indigent creature. 
Should you see a child attended with so many engines to 
make him go, as the child of God is attended with mercies 
to make him stand, you would say, " What an infirm, de- 
crepid, helpless thing is this !" Would you not say, " Such 
a one is not worth the keeping, and his father cannot look 
for any thing from him, but that he should live upon high 
charge and expense, as long as he liveth ?" Why, this is 
the case. Israel is such a one, nay, a worse : he cannot 
live without tender mercy, without great mercy, without 
rich mercy, without manifold mercy. He cannot stand, if 
mercy doth not compass him round about, nor go, unless 
mercy follows him. Yea, if mercy that rejoiceth against 
judgment doth not continually flutter over him, the very 
moth will eat him up, the canker will consume him. 



THE CHRISTIAN UNDER A SENSE OF GUILT— 
BUNYAN'S EXPERIENCE. 

I had no sooner began to recall to my mind my former 
experience of the goodness of God to my soul, but there 
came flocking into my mind an innumerable company of 
my sins and transgressions ; amongst which these were at 
this time most to my affliction, namely, my deadness, dull- 
ness, and coldness in holy duties ; my wanderings of heart, 
my wearisomeness in all good things, and my want of love 
to God, his ways, and his people, with this at the end of 
all : " Are these the fruits of Christianity ? Are these the 
tokens of a blessed man?" Now, I sunk and fell in my 
spirit, and was giving up all for lost ; but, as I was walk- 
ing up and down in the house, as a man in a most woful 
state, that word of God took hold of my heart, " Ye are 
justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is 
in Jesus Christ." But Oh, what a turn it made upon me. 

Now was I as one awakened out of some troublesome 



BUNYAN'S EXPERIENCE. 187 

sleep and dream ; and listening to this heavenly sentence, 
I was as if I had heard it thus spoken to me : " Sinner, 
thou thinkest that, because of thy sins and infirmities, I 
cannot save thy soul ; but behold, my Son is by me, and 
upon him I look, and not on thee, and shall deal with thee 
according as I am pleased with him." At this I was 
greatly enlightened in my mind, and made to understand 
that God could justify a sinner at any time; it was but his 
looking upon Christ, and imputing his benefits to us, and 
the work was forthwith done. 

And as I was thus in a muse, that scripture also came 
with great power upon my spirit, "JNTot by works of right- 
eousness that we have done, but according to his mercy he 
saved us." Now was I got on high ; I saw myself within 
the arms of grace and mercy ; and though I was before 
afraid to think of a dying hour, yet now I cried, " Let me 
die ;" now death was lovely and beautiful in my sight, for 
I saw we should never live indeed till we reach the other 
world. Oh, meth ought, this life is but a slumber, in com- 
parison of that above. At this time also I saw more in 
these words, " heirs of God," than ever I shall be able to 
express while I live in this world. Heirs of God! God 
himself is the portion of the saints. This I saw and won- 
dered at, but cannot tell you what I saw. 



Sometimes I have been so loaded with, my sins, that I 
could not tell where to rest nor what to do ; and at such 
times I thought it would have taken away my senses ; but 
God, through grace, hath so effectually applied the atone- 
ment of Jesus to my poor wounded, guilty conscience, and 
I have found such a sweet, solid, sober, heart-comforting 
peace, that it hath made me rejoice exceedingly ; and I 
have for a time been in a strait and trouble, that I should 
love and honor him no more, the virtue of whose blood hath 
so comforted my soul. 

My sins have at times appeared so great, that I have 



188 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thought one of them as heinous as all the sins of all the 
men in the world. Reader, these things are not fancies, 
for I have smarted for this experience ; yet the least he • 
lieving view of the hlood of Jesus hath made my guilt 
vanish to my astonishment, and delivered me into sweet 
and heavenly peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, 

Sometimes when my heart hath been hard, slothful, 
blind, and senseless — which are sad frames for a poor 
Christian — then hath the precious blood of Christ softened, 
enlivened, quickened, and enlightened my soul. 

When I have been loaded with sin and harassed with 
temptations, I had a trial of the virtue of Christ's blood, 
with a trial of the virtue of other things ; and I have found 
that when tears, prayers, repentings, and all other things 
could not reach my heart, one shining of the virtue of his 
blood hath in a very blessed manner delivered me. It 
hath come with such life and power, with such irresistible 
and marvellous glory, as to wipe off all the slurs, silence 
all the outcries, and quench all the fiery darts and flames 
of hell-fire, that are begotten by the charges of the law, 
Satan, and doubtful remembrances of a sinful life. 



SIN AND THE- SAVIOUR. 

Saints are sweetly sensible that the sense of sin and the 
assurance of pardon will make famous work in their poor 
hearts. Ah, what meltings without guilt ; what humility 
without casting down ; and what a sight of the creature's 
nothingness, yet without fear, will this sense of sin work 
in the soul. The sweetest frame, the most heart-endearing 
frame that possibly a Christian can get into while in this 
world, is to have a warm sight of sin and of a Saviour - 
upon the heart at one time. Now it weeps not for fear 
and through torment, but by virtue of constraining grace 
and mercy, and is at this very time so far off of disquiet- 
ness of heart by reason of the sight of its wickedness, that 
it is driven into an ecstasy by reason of the love and mercy 



VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH. ISO 

that is mingled with the sense of sin in the soul. The 
heart never sees so much of the power of mercy as now, 
nor of the virtue, value, and excellency of Christ in all his 
offices, as now ; and the tongue is never so sweetly enlarged 
to proclaim and cry up grace as now : now will Christ 
come to be glorified in his saints and admired in them that 
believe. 



Dost thou see in thee all manner of wickedness ? The 
best way that I can direct a soul in such a case, is to place 
a steadfast eye on Him that is full, and so to look to him by 
faith as that thereby thou mayest draw his fulness into 
thy heart. 



The best saints are most sensible of their sins, and most 
apt to make mountains of their molehills. 



THE CHRISTIAN IK DARKNESS. 
I know it is dreadful walking in darkness ; but if that 
should be the Lord's lot upon me, I pray G-od I may have 
faith enough to stay upon him till death ; and then will the 
clouds blow over, and I shall see him in the light of the 
living. 



THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH. 
Then they went on again, and their conductor did go 
before them, till they came to a place where was cast up 
a pit the whole breadth of the way ; and before they could 
be prepared to go over that, a great mist and a darkness 
fell upon them so that they could not see. Then said the 
pilgrims, "Alas, what now shall we do ?" But their guide 
made answer, " Fear not ; stand still, and see what an end 
will be put to this also." So they staid there, because their 
path was marred. Then they also thought they did hear 
more apparently the noise and rushing of the enemies ; the 
fire also and smoke of the pit was much easier to be dis- 



190 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

cerned. Then said Christiana to Mercy, " Now I see what 
my poor husband went through ; I have heard much of this 
place, but I never was here before now. Poor man ! he 
went here all alone in the night ; he had night almost 
quite through the way ; also these fiends were busy about 
him, as if they would have torn him in pieces. Many 
have spoke of it, but none can tell what the Valley of the 
Shadow of Death should mean until they come in them- 
selves. The 'heart knoweth its own bitterness ; a stranger 
intermeddleth not with its joy.' To be here is a fearful 
thing." 

" This," said Mr. Greatheart, " is like doing business in 
great waters, or like going down into the deep ; this is like 
being in the heart of the sea, and like going down to the 
bottom of the mountains ; now it seems as if the earth 
with its bars were about us for ever. But let them that 
walk in darkness and have no light, trust in the name of 
the Lord, and stay upon their God. For my part, I have 
often gone through this valley, and have been much harder 
put to it than now I am ; and yet you see I am alive. I 
would not boast, for that I am not my own saviour ; but I 
trust we shall have a good deliverance. Come, let us pray 
for light to Him that can lighten our darkness, and can re- 
buke not only these, but all the devils in hell." So they 
cried and prayed, and God sent light and deliverance. 



THE CHRISTIAN DOUBTING. 

It is a rare thing for some Christians to see their graces, 
but a thing very common for such to see their sins, yea, 
and to feel them too in their lusts and desires, to the shak- 
ing of their souls. 

Question. But since I have lusts and desires both 
ways, how shall I know to which my soul adheres ? 

Answer. This may be known thus : 

1. Which wouldest thou have prevail; the desires of 
the flesh, or the lusts of the spirit ? Whose side art thou 



THE CHRISTIAN DOUBTING. 191 

of? Doth thy soul now inwardly say, and that with a 
strong indignation, " Oh, let God, let grace, let my desires 
that are good, prevail against my flesh, for Jesus Christ's 
sake?" 

2. What kind of secret wishes hast thou in thy soul, 
when thou feelest the lusts of thy flesh to rage ? Dost 
thou not inwardly, and with indignation against sin, say, 
"0 that I might never, never feel one such motion more. 
that my soul were so full of grace, that there might be 
no longer room for even the least lust to come into my 
thoughts ?" 

3. What kind of thoughts hast thou of thyself, now thou 
seest those desires of thine that are good so briskly opposed 
by those that are bad ? Dost thou not say, " Oh, I am the 
basest of creatures ; I could even spew at myself. There 
is no man in all the world, in my eyes, so loathsome as 
myself is. I abhor myself; a toad is not so vile as I am. 
Lord, let me be any thing but a sinner ; any thing, so 
thou subduest mine iniquities for me?" 

4. How dost thou like the discovery of that which thou 
thinkest is grace in other men ! Dost thou not cry out, 
(i 0h, I bless them in my heart! Oh, methinks grace is 
the greatest beauty in the world ! Yea, I could be content 
to live and die with those people that have the grace 
of God in their souls. A hundred times, and a hundred 
when I have been upon my knees before God, I have de- 
sired, were it the will of God, that I might be in their con- 
dition ?" 

5. How art thou, when thou thinkest that thou thyself 
hast grace? "Oh, then," says the soul, " I am as if I 
could leap out of myself; joy, joy, joy then is in my heart. 
It is, methinks, the greatest mercy under heaven to be 
made a gracious man." 

And is it thus with thy soul indeed ? Happy man ! 
It is grace that has thy soul, though sin at present works 
in thy flesh. Yea, all those breathings are the very actings 



192 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

of grace, even of the grace of desire, of love, of humility, 
and of the fear of God within thee. Be of good courage ; 
thou art on the riffht side. 



"I find," says the doubting Christian, "weakness and 
faintness as to my graces ; my faith, my hope, my love 
and desires to these and all other Christian duties, are 
weak : I am like the man in the dream, that would have 
run, but could not ; that would have fought, but could 
not, and that would have fled, but could not." 

Answer. Weak graces are graces — weak graces may 
grow stronger ; but if the iron be blunt, put to the more 
strength. Eccles. 10 : 10. Christ seems to be most tender 
of the weak : " He shall gather lambs with his arm, shall 
carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead them that 
are with young." Only here thy wisdom will be mani- 
fested, to wit, that thou grow in grace, and that thou use 
lawfully and diligently the means to do it. 2 Pet. 3 : 18 ; 
Phil. 3 : 10, 11 ; 1 Thess. 3 : 11-13. 



I never heard a presumptuous man in my life say that 
he was afraid that he presumed ; but I have heard many 
an honest, humble soul say that they have been afraid 
that their faith has been presumptive. 



INDWELLING SIN. 

A man, in mind and affections, may depart from that 
which yet will not depart from him, yea, a man in mind 
may depart from that which yet will dwell in him as long 
as he lives. 

For instance, there are many diseases that cleave to 
men, from which in their minds they willingly depart ; 
yea, their greatest disquietmcnt is, that so bad a distemper 
will abide by them ; and might they but have their desire 
accomplished, they would be as far therefrom as the ends 
of the earth are asunder : and while they are found to con- 



MR. FEARING-. 193 

tinue together, the mind departs therefrom, and is gone 
either to God or to physicians for help and deliverance 
from it. 

And thus it is with the saint, and should be with every 
one that by way of profession nameth the name of Christ, 
Rom. 7 ; he should depart from his indwelling sin with 
his mind : " With his mind he should serve the law of 
God." 



MR. FEARING. 

Honest. It seems he was well at last. 

Great-heart. Yes, yes ; I never had a doubt about 
him. He was a man of a choice spirit ; only he was 
always kept very low, and that made his life so burden- 
some to himself and so very troublesome to others. He 
was, above many, tender of sin ; he was so afraid of doing 
injuries to others, that he would often deny himself of that 
which was lawful, because he would not offend. 

Honest. But what should be the reason that such a 
good man should be all his days so much in the dark ? 

Great-heart. There are two sorts of reasons for it. 
One is, the wise God will have it so ; some must pipe, and 
some must weep : now, Mr. Fearing was one that played 
upon the bass. He and his fellows sound the sackbut, whose 
notes are more doleful than the notes of other music are, 
though indeed some say the bass is the ground of music. 
And, for my part, I care not at all for that profession that 
begins not in heaviness of mind. The first string that the 
musician usually touches is the bass, when he intends to 
put all in tune ; God also plays upon this string first, when 
he sets the soul in tune for himself. Only, there was the 
imperfection of Mr. Fearing, he could play upon no other 
music but this till towards his latter end. 

Honest. He was a very zealous man, as one may see 
by the relation which you have given of him. Difficul- 
ties, lions, or Vanity Fair, he feared not at all : it was only 

Riches of Bunyan. 9 



194 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sin, death, and hell that were to him a terror, because 
he had some doubts about his interest in that celestial 
country. 



When he was come at the river where was no bridge, 
there he was in a heavy case. " Now, now," he said, " he 
should be drowned for ever, and so never see that face with 
comfort, that he had come so many miles to behold." And 
here I took notice of what was very remarkable — the water 
of that river was lower at this time than ever I saw it in 
all my life ; so he went over at last, not much above wet- 
shod. When he was going up to the gate, Mr. Great-heart 
began to take his leave of him, and to wish him a good 
reception above ; so he said, " I shall, I shall ;" then parted 
we asunder, and I saw him no more. 



ENCOURAGEMENT FOR THE DOUBTING CHRISTIAN. 

Doth this water of life run like a river, like a broad, 
lull, and deep river ? Then let no man, be his transgres- 
sions never so many, fear at all but there is enough to save 
his soul and to spare. Nothing has been more common 
to many, than to doubt the grace of God : a thing most un- 
becoming a sinner of any thing in the world. To break 
the law, is a fact foul enough ; but to question the suffi- 
ciency of the grace of God to save therefrom, is worse than 
sin, if worse can be. Wherefore, despairing soul, for it is 
to thee I speak, forbear thy mistrusts, cast off thy slavish 
fears, hang thy misgivings as to this upon the hedge, and 
believe ; thou hast an invitation sufficient thereto, a river is 
before thy face. And as for thy want of goodness and 
works, let that by no means daunt thee ; this is a river of 
water of life, streams of grace and mercy. There is, as I 
said, enough therein to help thee, for grace brings all that 
is wanting to the soul. Thou, therefore, hast nothing to 
do — I mean as to the curing of thy soul of its doubts and 



ADOPTION. 195 

fears and despairing thoughts — but to drink and live for 



Prudence. Can you remember by what means you find 
your annoyances, at times, as if they were vanquished ? 

Chejstian. Yes ; when I think on what I saw at the 
cross, that will do it ; and when I look upon my embroid- 
ered coat, that will do it ; and when I look into the roll 
that I carry in my bosom, that will do it ; and when my 
thoughts wax warm about whither I am going, that will 
do it. 

Prudence. And what is it that makes you so desirous 
to go to mount Zion ? 

Christdan. Why, there I hope to see him alive that did 
hang dead on the cross, and there I hope to be rid of all 
those things that to this day are in me, an annoyance to 
me : there, they say, there is no death ; and there shall I 
dwell with such company as I like best. For, to tell you 
the truth, I love him because I was by him eased of my 
burden ; and I am weary of my inward sickness. I would 
fain be where I shall die no more, and with the company 
that shall continually cry, "Holy, holy, holy !" 



Be often remembering what a blessed thing it is to be 
saved, to go to heaven, to be made like angels, and to dwell 
with God and Christ to all eternity. 



ADOPTION. 
The Spirit cannot, after he hath come to the soul as a 
Spirit of adoption, come again as a Spirit of bondage to 
put the soul into his first fear, to wit, a fear of eternal 
damnation, because he cannot say and unsay, do and undo. 
As a Spirit of adoption, he told me that my sins were for- 
given me and I was included in the covenant of grace, that 
God was my Father through Christ, that I was under the 
promise of salvation, and that this calling and gift of God 



196 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

to me are permanent and without repentance. And do you 
think that, after he told me this, and sealed up the truth 
of it to my precious soul, he will come to me and tell me 
that I am yet in my sins, under the curse of the law and 
the eternal wrath of God ? No, no ; the word of the gos- 
pel is not yea, yea ; nay, nay. It is only yea and amen ; 
it is so, " as God is true." 2 Cor. 17 : 20. 



Sin, after that the Spirit of adoption has come, cannot 
dissolve the relations of Father and son, of Father and 
child. And this the church did rightly assert, and that 
when her heart was under great hardness and when she 
had the guilt of erring from his ways; saith she, " Doubt- 
less thou art our Father :" doubtless thou art, though this 
be our case, and though Israel should not acknowledge us 
for such. 

That sin dissolveth not the relation of Father and son, 
is further evident : When the fulness of time was come, 
God sent forth his Son made of a woman, made under the 
law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And be- 
cause ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son 
into your hearts, crying, " Father, Father !" Now mark : 
"Wherefore, thou art no more a servant ;" that is, no more 
under the law of death and damnation, but a son ; and if 
a son, then an heir of God through Christ. 

Suppose a child doth grievously transgress against and 
offend his father ; is the relation between them therefore 
dissolved ? Again, suppose the father should scourge and 
chasten the son for such offences, is the relation between 
them therefore dissolved ? Yea, suppose the child should 
now, through ignorance, cry and say, " This man is now no 
more my father ;" is he therefore no more his father ? Doth 
not every body see the folly of arguings ? Why, of the same 
nature is the doctrine, the faith, that after we have re- 
ceived the Spirit of adoption, the Spirit of bondage is sent 
to us again to put us in fear of eternal damnation. 



ADOPTION. 197 

Know then that thy sin, after thou hast received the 
Spirit of adoption to cry unto God, "Father, Father," is 
counted the transgression of a child, not of a slave ; and 
that all that happeneth to thee for that transgression is hut 
the chastisement of a father : "And what son is he whom 
the father chasteneth not?" 

Now let not any, from what hath heen said, take courage 
to live loose lives, under a supposition that once in Christ 
they are ever in Christ, and the covenant cannot he broken, 
nor the relation of Father and child dissolved ; for they 
that do so, it is evident, have not known what it is to re- 
ceive the Spirit of adoption. It is the spirit of the devil, 
in his own hue, that suggesteth this unto them, and that 
prevaileth with them to do so. Shall we do evil that good 
may come ? Shall we sin that grace may abound ; or shall 
we be base in life because God by grace hath secured us 
from wrath to come ? God forbid : these conclusions be- 
token one void of the fear of God indeed, and of the Spirit 
of adoption too. 

Though God cannot, will not dissolve the relation 
which the Spirit of adoption hath made betwixt the Father 
and the sons, for any sins that such do commit ; yet he can 
and often doth take away from them the comfort of their 
adoption, not suffering children while sinning to have the 
sweet and comfortable sense thereof on their hearts. 

God can lay thee in the dungeon in chains, and roll a 
stone upon thee ; he can make thy feet fast in the stocks, 
and make thee a gazing-stock for men and angels. 

God can tell how to cause to cease the sweet operations 
and blessed influences of his grace in thy soul ; to make 
those gospel-showers that formerly thou hast enjoyed, to 
become now to thee nothing but powder and dust. 

God can tell how to fight against thee with the sword 
of his mouth, and to make thee a butt for his arrows ; and 
this is a dispensation most dreadful. 

God can tell how to bow thee down with guilt and dis- 



198 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

tress, that thou shalt in nowise be able to lift up thy 
head. 

God can tell how to break thy bones, and to make thee, 
by reason of that, to live in continual anguish of spirit ; 
yea, he can send a fire into thy bones that shall burn, and 
none shall quench it. 

God can tell how to lay thee aside, and make no use of 
thee as to any work for him in thy generation. He can 
throw thee aside as a broken vessel. 

God can tell how to kill thee, and take thee away from 
the earth for thy sins. 

God can tell how to plague thee in thy death, with 
great plagues and of long continuance. 

What shall I say ? God can tell how to let Satan loose 
upon thee ; when thou liest dying, he can license him then 
to assault thee with great temptations ; he can tell how to 
make thee possess the guilt of all thy unkindness towards 
him, and that when thou, as I said, art going out of the 
world ; he can cause that thy life shall be in continual 
doubt before thee, and not suffer thee to take any comfort 
day or night ; yea, he can drive thee even to a madness 
with his chastisements for thy folly, and yet all shall be 
done by him to thee as a father chastiseth his son. 

Further, God can tell how to tumble thee from off thy 
death-bed in a cloud, he can let thee die in the dark ; when 
thou art dying, thou shalt not know whither thou art go- 
ing, to wit, whether to heaven or to hell. Yea, he can 
tell how to let thee seem to come short of life, both in 
thine own eyes and also in the eyes of them that behold 
thee. " Let us therefore fear," says the apostle — though 
not with slavish, yet with filial fear — " lest, a promise being 
left us of entering into rest, any of us should seem to come 
short of it." 

Now all this and much more can God do to his, as a 
father by his rod and a father by rebukes : ah, who know 
but those that are under them, what terrors, fears, dis- 



CHRIST OUR LIFE, 199 

tresses, and amazements, God can bring his people into ? 
He can put them into a furnace, a fire, and no tongue can 
tell what, so unsearchable and fearful are his fatherly- 
chastisements, and yet never give them the spirit of bond- 
age again to fear. Therefore, if thou art a son, take heed of 
sin, lest all these things overtake thee and come upon thee. 



Dost thou fear the Lord? " The mercy of the Lord is 
from everlasting to everlasting on them that fear him." 

Child of God, thou that fearest God, here is mercy nigh 
thee, mercy enough, everlasting mercy upon thee. This 
is long-lived mercy. It will live longer than thy sin ; it 
will live longer than temptation ; it will live longer than 
thy sorrows ; it will live longer than thy persecutors. It 
is mercy from everlasting to contrive thy salvation, and 
mercy to everlasting to resist all thy adversaries. Now 
what can hell and death do to him that hath this mercy 
of God upon him ? And this hath the man that feareth 
the Lord. 

Take that other blessed word, and 0, thou man that 
fearest the Lord, hang it like a chain of gold about thy 
neck : "As the heaven is high above the earth, so great is 
his mercy to them that fear him." If mercy as big, as 
high, and as good as heaven itself will be a privilege, the 
man that feareth God shall have the privilege. 



CHRIST OUR LIFE. 
Here is my life, namely, the birth of this Man, the 
righteousness of this man, the blood of this man, the death 
and resurrection of this man, the ascension and interces- 
sion of this man for me, and the second coming of this 
man to judge the world in righteousness. I say, here is 
my life, if I see this by faith without me, through the 
operation of the Spirit within me : I am safe, I am at 
peace, I am comforted, I am encouraged ; and I know that 
my comfort, peace, and encouragement is true, and given 



200 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

me from heaven by the Father of mercies, through the Son 
of the Virgin Mary — the Son of man, the Son of God, the 
true God. 



UNION WITH CHRIST. 
Stay not in some transient comforts, but abide restless 
till thou seest a union betwixt thee and this blessed One, 
to wit, that he is a root and thou a branch — that he is 
head, and thou a member. And then shalt thou know 
that the case is so between thee and him, when grace and 
his Spirit have made thee to lay the whole stress of thy 
justification upon him, and have subdued thy heart and 
mind to be one spirit with him. 



LIFE OF FAITH. 
man or woman, whoever thou art, that art savingly 
convinced by the Spirit of Christ, thou hast such an end- 
less desire after the Lord Jesus Christ, that thou canst not 
be content with any thing below the blood of the Son of 
God to purge thy conscience withal ; even that blood that 
was shed without the gates. Also thou canst not be at 
quiet, till thou dost see by true faith that the righteousness 
of the Son of Mary is imputed unto thee and put upon 
thee. Rom. 3 : 21-23. Then also thou canst not be at 
quiet, till thou hast power over thy lusts and corruptions, 
till thou hast brought them into subjection to the Lord 
Jesus Christ. Then thou wilt never think that thou hast 
enough of faith : no, thou wilt be often crying out, " Lord, 
give me more precious faith ; Lord, more faith in thy 
righteousness ; more faith in thy blood and death ; more 
faith in thy resurrection ; and, Lord, more faith in this — 
that thou art now at the right hand of thy Father in thy 
human nature, making intercession for me a miserable sin- 
ner." And then, poor soul, if thou comest but hither, 
thou wilt never have an itching car after another gospel. 



If thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God 



LIFE OF FAITH. 201 

has allotted thee to do in this world for his name, labor to 
live in the savor and sense of thy freedom and liberty by 
Jesus Christ ; that is, keep this, if possible, ever before 
thee — that thou art a redeemed one, taken out of this 
world and from under the curse of the law, out of the 
power of the devil, and placed in a kingdom of grace and 
forgiveness of sins for Christ's sake. 

This is of absolute use in this matter ; yea, so absolute 
that it is impossible for any Christian to do his work 
christianly, without some enjoyment of it. 



The first thing of which the soul is sick, and by which 
the conscience receiveth wounding, is the guilt of sin and 
fear of the curse of God for it ; for which are provided the 
wounds and precious blood of Christ, which flesh and 
blood, if the soul eat thereof by faith, give deliverance 
therefrom. Upon this the Jilth of sin appears most odious ; 
for that it hath not only at present denied the soul, but 
because it keeps it from doing those duties of love which 
by the love of Christ it is constrained to endeavor the per- 
fecting of. For filth appears filth, that is, irksome and 
odious to a contrary principle now implanted in the soul ; 
which principle had its conveyance thither by faith in the 
sacrifice and death of Christ going before. " The love of 
Christ constraineth us ; because we thus judge, that if one 
died for all, then were all dead : and that he died for all, 
that they who live should not henceforth live unto them- 
selves, but to him that died for them and rose again." 

The man that has received Christ desires to be holy, 
because the nature of the faith that lays hold on Christ 
worketh by love, and longeth, yea, greatly longeth, that 
the soul may be brought not only into a universal con- 
formity to his will, but into his very likeness ; and because 
that state agreeth not with what we are now, but with 
what we shall be hereafter : " Therefore in this we groan, 
being burdened" with that which is of a contrary nature, 

9* 



202 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

" earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house 
which is from heaven;" which state is not that of Adam's 
innocency, but that which is spiritual and heavenly, even 
that which is now in the Lord in heaven. 



Blessed be God for Jesus Christ, and for that he took 
our nature and sin and curse and death upon him ; and for 
that he did also by himself, by one offering, purge our sins. 
We that have believed have found rest, even there where 
Christ and his Father have smelled a sweet savor of rest : 
because we are presented to God even now complete in the 
righteousness of him, and stand discharged of guilt even 
by the faith of him ; yea, as sins past, so sins to come, were 
taken up and satisfied for by that offering of the body of 
Jesus. We who have had a due sense of sins, and of the 
nature of the justice of God, know that no remission of the 
guilt of any one can be, but by atonement made by blood. 
Heb. 9 : 22. 

We also know that where faith in Jesus Christ is want- 
ing, there can be neither good principle, nor good endeavor ; 
for faith is the first of all graces, and without it there is 
nothing but sin. Horn. 14 : 23. 

We know also that faith, as a grace in us, severed from 
the righteousness of Christ, is only a beholder of things, 
but not a justifier of persons ; and that if it lay not hold of 
and applieth not that righteousness which is in Christ, it 
carries us no further than to the devils. 

We know that this doctrine killeth sin, and curseth it 
at the very roots : I say, we know it, who have mourned 
over him whom we have pierced, and who have been con- 
founded to see that God by his blood should be pacified 
towards us for all the wickedness we have done. Yea, wc 
have a double motive to be holy and humble before him : 
one, because he died for us on earth ; another, because he 
now appears for us in heaven, there sprinkling for us the 
mercy-seat with his blood, there ever living to make inter- 



DIVINE LOVE IMPROVED. 203 

cession for them that come unto God by him. " If any 
man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus 
Christ the righteous, who is the propitiation for our sins." 
Yet this works in us no looseness nor favor to sin, but so 
much the more an abhorrence of it : " She loveth much, 
for much was forgiven her ;" yea, she weeps, she washeth 
his feet, and wipeth them with the hairs of her head, to 
the confounding of Simon the Pharisee, and all such igno- 
rant hypocrites. 



DIVINE LOVE IMPROVED. 
Empty notions of the love of God and of Christ will do 
nothing but harm ; wherefore they are not empty notions 
that I press thee to rest in, but that thou labor after the 
knowledge of the savor of this good ointment which the 
apostle calls "the savor of the knowledge of this Lord 
Jesus." Know it until it becomes sweet or pleasant to 
thy soul, and then it will preserve and keep thee. Make 
this love of God and of Christ thine own, and not another's. 
Many there are that can talk largely of the love of God to 
Abraham, to David, to Peter, and Paul. But that is not 
the thing. Give not over until this love be made thine 
own ; until thou find and feel it to run warm in thy heart 
by the shedding of it abroad there, by the Spirit that God 
has given thee. Then thou wilt know it with an obliging 
and engaging knowledge ; yea, then thou wilt know it with 
a soul-strengthening and soul-encouraging knowledge. 



Wouldst thou improve this love of God and of Christ ? 
then set it against the love of all other things whatsoever, 
even until this love shall conquer thy soul from the love of 
them to itself. 

This is Christian. Do it therefore, and say, " Why 
should any thing have my heart but God, but Christ ? He 
loves me with love that passeth knowledge. He loves me, 
and he shall have me ; he loves me, and I will love him ; 



204 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

his love stripped him of all for my sake ; Lord, let my love 
strip me of all for thy sake. I am a son of love, an object 
of love, a monument of love, of free love, of distinguishing 
love, of peculiar love, and of love that passeth knowledge ; 
and why should not I w T alk in love ? in love to God, in love 
to men, in holy love, in love unfeigned ?" 

This is the way to improve the love of God for thy 
advantage, for the subduing of thy passions, and for sanc- 
tifying of thy nature. 

It is an odious thing to hear men of base lives talking 
of the love of God, of the death of Christ, and of the glori- 
ous grace that is presented unto sinners by the word of the 
truth of the gospel. Praise is comely for the upright, not 
for the profane. 

Therefore let him speak of love that is taken with love, 
that is captivated with love, that is carried away with love. 
If this man speaks of it, his speaking signifies something ; 
the powers and bands of love are upon him, and he shows 
to all that he knows what he is speaking of. But the very 
mentioning of love is, in the mouth of the profane, like a 
parable in the mouth of fools. Wherefore, Christian, im- 
prove this love of God as thou shouldst, and that will 
improve thee as thou wouldst. 



It is natural for children to depend upon their father 
for what they want. If they want a pair of shoes, they go 
and tell him ; if they want bread, they go and tell him : 
so should the children of God do. Do you w r ant spiritual 
bread ? Go tell God of it. Do you want strength of grace ? 
Ask it of God. Do you want strength against Satan's 
temptations ? Go and tell God cf it. When the devil 
tempts you, run home and tell your heavenly Father ; go 
pour out your complaints to God ; this is natural to chil- 
dren — if any wrong them, they go and tell their father. 



If thou wouldst improve this love of God and of Christ, 



DIVINE LOVE IMPROVED. 205 

keep thyself in it : " Keep yourselves in the love of God." 
Living a holy life is the way, after a man has believed unto 
justification, to keep himself in the favor and comfort of the 
love of God. And that thou wouldst indeed do so. And 
that because, if thou shalt want the savor of it, thou wilt 
soon want tenderness to the commandment, which is the 
rule by which thou must walk, if thou wilt do good to thy- 
self, or honor God in the world. " To him that ordereth 
his conversation aright, I will show the salvation of God." 
He that would live a sweet, comfortable, joyful life, must 
live a very holy life. 



All God's children are criers : Cannot you be quiet un- 
less you are filled with the milk of God's word ? cannot 
you be satisfied unless you have peace with God ? Pray 
you consider it, and be serious with yourselves ; if you have 
not these marks, you will fall short of the kingdom of God, 
you shall never have an interest there : there is no intrud- 
ing : they will say, "Lord, Lord, open unto us;" and he 
will say, " I know you not." No child of God, no heav- 
enly inheritance. do not flatter yourselves with a por- 
tion among the sons, unless you live like sons. When we 
see a king's son playing with a beggar, this is unbecoming; 
so if you be the King's children, live like the King's chil- 
dren : if you be risen with Christ, set your affections on 
things above, and not on things below ; when you come 
together, talk of what your Father promised you ; you 
should all love your Father's will, and be content and 
pleased with the exercises you meet with in the world ; if 
you are the children of God, live together lovingly ; if the 
world quarrel with you, it is no matter, but it is sad if 
you quarrel together : if this be among you, it is a sign of 
ill-breeding ; it is according to no rules you have in the 
word of God. Dost thou see a soul that has the image of 
God in him ? Love him, love him ; say, " This man and 
I must go to heaven one day ;" serve one another, do good 



206 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

for one another ; if any wrong you, pray to God to right 
you, and love the brotherhood. 



HOLY LIVING-. 
Remember, man, if the grace of God hath taken hold of 
thy soul, thou art a man of another world, and indeed a 
subject of another and more noble kingdom, the kingdom 
of God — which is the kingdom of the gospel, of grace, of 
faith, and' righteousness, and the kingdom of heaven here- 
after. In these things thou shouldst exercise thyself, not 
making heavenly things which God hath bestowed upon 
thee, stoop to things that are of the world ; but rather here 
beat down the body, to mortify thy members, hoist up thy 
mind to the things that are above, and practically hold 
forth before all the world that blessed word of life. 



Assure thyself, thy God will not give thee straw, but 
he will expect brick. 



It is amiable and pleasant to God when Christians keep 
their rank, relation, and station, doing all as becomes their 
quality and calling. "When Christians stand all in their 
places, and do the work of their stations, then they are 
like the flowers in the garden, that stand and grow where 
the gardener hath planted them ; and then they shall both 
honor the garden in which they are planted, and the gar- 
dener that hath so disposed of them. From the hyssop 
in the wall to the cedar in Lebanon, their fruit is their 
glory. And seeing the stock into which we are planted is 
the most fruitful stock, the sap conveyed thereout the most 
fruitful sap, and the dresser of our souls the wisest husband- 
man, how contrary to nature, example, and expectation we 
should be, if we should not be rich in good works. Where- 
fore, take heed of being painted fire, wherein is no warmth ; 
of being painted flowers, which retain no smell ; and of 
being painted trees, whereon is no fruit. Whoso boasteth 



OPPORTUNITIES IMPROVED. 207 

himself of a false gift, is like clouds and wind without rain. 
Farewell ; the Lord be- with thy spirit, that thou mayest 
profit for time to come. 



They only have benefit by Christ to eternal life, who 
die by his example as well as live by his blood ; for in his 
death was both merit and example ; and they are like to 
miss in the first, that are not concerned in the second. 



As it is natural for the stranger, so soon as ever he has 
entered the gates of a city, to have his feet in the streets 
of the city, so it is natural for the sinner, so soon as ever 
he is entered into the church of Christ, to have his feet 
treading in the way and paths of holiness. Wherefore it 
is usual in the holy Scripture to call the transformation of 
the sinner from Satan to God a holy way, and also to ad- 
monish him that is so transformed to walk in that way, say- 
ing, Walk in the faith, love, spirit, and newness of life, and 
walk in the truth, ways, statutes, and judgments of God. 



Jacob, when sick, would worship God. though so weak 
as not able to do it without leaning upon the top of his 
staff: a blessed example for the diligent, and reproof for 
those that are slothful. 



OPPORTUNITIES IMPROVED. 

Good opportunities are God's seasons for doing the 
work ; wherefore, watch for them and take them as they 
come. Paul tells us, he was " in watchings often ;" surely 
it was that he might take the season that God should give 
him to do his work for him ; as he also says to Timothy, 
" Watch thou in all things, do the work," etc. 

Opportunities as to some things come but once in one's 
lifetime, as in the case of Esther, and of Nicodemus and 
holy Joseph ; when Esther begged the lives of the Jews, 
and the other the body of Jesus ; which had they once let 



208 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

slip or neglected, they could not have recovered it again 
for ever. Watch, then, for the opportunity : 

Because it is God's season, which without doubt is the 
best season and time for every purpose. 

Because Satan watches to spoil, by mistiming as well 
as by corrupting whatever thou shalt do for God. " "When 
I would do good," says Paul, " evil is present ;" that is, 
either to withdraw me from my purpose, or else to infect 
my work. 

That the opportunity may not slip thee, either for 
want of care or forecast, 

1. Sit always loose from an overmuch affecting thine 
own concernments, and believe that thou wast not born for 
thyself: a brother is born for adversity. 

2. Get thy heart tenderly affected with the welfare of 
all things that bear the stamp and image of God. 

3. Study thy own place and capacity that God hath 
put thee in in this world ; for suitable to thy place are 
thy work and opportunities. 

4. Make provision beforehand, that when things pre* 
sent themselves, thou mayst come up to a good perform- 
ance : be prepared for every good work. 

5. Take heed of carnal reasonings ; keep the heart ten- 
der, but set thy face like a flint for God. 

6. And look well to the manner of every duty. 



GOOD WORKS. 
To stoop low is a good work, if it be done in faith and 
love ; though but by a cup of cold water, it is really more 
worth in itself, and of higher esteem with God, than all 
worldly and perishing glory. 



When holiness is lovely and beautiful to the soul, 
and when the name of Christ is more precious than life, 
then will the soul sit down and be afflicted, because men 
keep not God's law. " I beheld the transgressors, and 



SELF-DENIAL. 209 

was grieved, because they kept not thy word." Psalm 
119:158. 



The heart that is fullest of good works has in it the 
least room for Satan's temptations. 



Souls rightly touched, will labor to draw not only their 
families, but a whole city after Christ. John 4 : 28, 29. 



SELF-DENIAL. 
If thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God 
hath appointed thee to do in this world for his name, then 
beware thou do not stop and stick when hard work comes 
before thee. The word and Spirit of God come sometimes 
like chainshot to us, as if it would cut down all — as when 
Abraham was to offer up Isaac, and the Levites to slay 
their brethren. Oh, how willingly would our flesh and 
blood escape the cross for Christ ! The comfort of the 
gospel, the sweetness of the promise, how T pleasing is it to 
us ! Like Ephraim, we like to tread out the corn, and to 
hear those pleasant songs and music that gospel sermons 
make, where only grace is preached and nothing of our 
duty as to works of self-denial. But as for such, God will 
tread upon their fair neck, and yoke them with Christ's 
yoke ; for then they have a work to do, even a work of 
self-denial. 



" Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, 
and take up his cross and follow me." Let him first sit 
down and count up the cost and the charge he is like to 
be at, if he follow me ; for following of me is not like fol- 
lowing of some other masters. The winds set always on 
my face ; and the foaming rage of the sea of this world, 
and the proud and lofty waves thereof do continually beat 
upon the sides of the bark that myself, my cause, and my 
followers are in ; he therefore that will not run hazards, 



210 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

and that is afraid to venture a drowning, let him not set 
foot into this vessel. 



Some, when they cojne at the cross, will either there 
make a- stop and go no further, or else, if they can. step 
over it ; if not, they will go round about. Do not thou do 
this, but take it up and kiss it, and bear it after Jesus. 



Where is the man that walketh with his cross upon his 
shoulder ? Where is the man that is zealous of moral 
holiness ? Indeed, for those things that have nothing of 
the cross of the purse, or of the cross of the belly, or of the 
cross of the back, or of the cross of the vanity of household 
affairs — for those things, I find we have many, and very 
busy sticklers ; but otherwise, the cross, self-denial, charity, 
purity in life and conversation, is almost quite out of doors 
among professors. But, man of God, do thou be singular 
as to these. 



OBEDIENCE IN LITTLE THINGS. 

Little things do ofttimes prove us most ; for we, through 
the pride of our hearts, are apt to overlook little things, 
because, though commanded, they are but little. 

Sometimes God would have men exact to a word, some- 
times even to a tack or pin or loop, sometimes to a step. 
Be careful, then, in little things, but yet leave not the 
other undone. 



MOTIVES TO HOLY LIVING-. 
When God shows a man the sin he has committed, the 
hell he has deserved, the heaven he has lost — and yet that 
Christ and grace and pardon may be had — this will make 
him serious, this will make him melt, this will break his 
heart, this will show him that there is more than air, than 
a noise, than an empty sound in religion ; and this is the 
man whose heart, whose life, whose conversation and all, 



MOTIVES TO HOLY LIVING. 211 

will be engaged in the matter of the eternal salvation of 
his precious and immortal soul. 



Though there are many mercies that lay an obligation 
upon men to be holy, yet he that shall want the obligation 
that is begotten by the faith of redeeming mercy, wanteth 
the main principle of true holiness ;* nor will any other be 
found sufficiently to sanctify the heart to the causing of it 
to produce such a life ; nor can such holiness be accepted, 
because it comes not forth in the name of Christ. That 
which constrained David was forgiving and redeeming 
mercy, and that which constrained Paul was the love that 
Christ showed to him in dying for his sins and in rising 
from the dead. 

Paul also beseecheth the Romans by the redeeming, 
justifying, preserving, and electing mercy of God, that 
they present their body a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable 
to God, which, saith he, is your reasonable service. Hence 
all along, they that are exhorted to holiness in the New 
Testament, are exhorted to it upon the supposition of the 
benefit of redemption which they have received by Jesus 
Christ. Walk in love, as Christ loved us. 



Can you give me some motive to self-denial? Yes, the 
Lord Jesus denied himself for thee : what sayest thou to 
that ? 



Oh, I have thought sometimes what bloody creatures 
hath sin made us. The beasts of the field must be slain 
by thousands before Christ came, to signify to us that we 
should have a Saviour ; and after that, he must come him- 
self and die a worse death than died those beasts, before 
the work of saving could be finished. redemption, re- 
demption by blood, is the heart-endearing consideration ! 
This is that which will make the water stand in our 
eyes, that will break a heart of flint, and that will make 



212 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

one do as they do that are in bitterness for their first- 
born. 



Perhaps in the day of thy conversion thou wast more 
unruly than many. Like a bullock unaccustomed to the 
yoke, hardly tamed, thou wast brought home by strong 
hands. Thou wouldst not drive : the Lord Jesus must 
take thee up, lay thee upon his shoulder, and carry thee 
home to his Father's house. This should engage thy 
heart to study to advance the grace of God. 



It may do thee no harm but good to cast an eye over 
thy shoulder, at those that now lie roaring under the ven- 
geance of eternal fire ; it may put thee in mind of what 
thou wast once, and of what thou must yet assuredly be, 
if grace by Christ preventeth not : keep then thy conscience 
awake with wrath and grace, with heaven and hell ; but 
let grace and heaven bear sway. 



Get thou thy soul possessed with the spirit of the Son, 
and believe thou art perfectly set free by him from what* 
soever thou by sin hast deserved at the hand of revenging 
justice. This doctrine unlooseth thy hands, takes off thy 
yoke, and lets thee go upright ; this doctrine puts spiritual 
and heavenly inclinations into thy soul, and the faith of 
this truth doth show thee that God hath so surprised thee 
and gone beyond thee with his blessed and everlasting 
love, that thou canst not but reckon thyself his debtor for 
ever. " Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh, 
to live after the flesh." Rom. 8 : 12. 



If thou wouldst be faithful to that work that God hath 
allotted thee to do in this world for his name, then labor to 
see a beauty and glory in holiness and in every good work ; 
this tends much to the engaging of thy heart. worship 
the Lord in the beauty of holiness ; fear before him all the 



MOTIVES TO HOLY LIVING. 213 

earth ; and for thy help in this, think much on this in gen- 
eral, that " thus saith the Lord" is the wind-up of every 
command ; for indeed much of the glory and beauty of 
duties doth lie in the glory and excellency of the person 
that doth command them ; and hence it is, that "Be it 
enacted by the king's most excellent majesty" is the head 
of every law, that that law should therefore be rever- 
enced by and be made glorious and beautiful to all. And 
we see upon this very account, what power and place the 
precepts of kings do take in the hearts of their subjects, 
every one loving and reverencing the statute because 
there is the name of their king. Will you rebel against 
the king ? is a word that shakes the world. "Well then, 
turn these things about for an argument to the matter in 
hand, and let the name of God, seeing he is wiser and bet- 
ter and of more glory and beauty than kings, beget in thy 
heart a beauty in all things that are commanded thee of 
God. And indeed, if thou do not in this act thus, thou 
wilt stumble at some of thy duty and work thou hast to do ; 
for some of the commands of God are in themselves so 
mean and low, that take away from them the name of 
God and thou wilt do as Naaman the Syrian, despise in- 
stead of obeying. What is there in the Lord's supper, in 
baptism, yea, in preaching the word and prayer, were they 
not the appointments of God ? His name being entailed 
to them makes them every one glorious and beautiful. 
Wherefore no marvel if he that looks upon them without 
their title-page, goeth away in a rage like Naaman, prefer- 
ring others before them. " What is Jordan ? Are not 
Abana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all 
the waters in Israel ? May I not wash in them and be 
clean ?" saith he. This was because he remembered not 
that the name of God was in the command. Israel's 
trumpets of rams'-horns, and Isaiah's walking naked, and 
Ezekiel's wars against a tile, would doubtless have been 
ignoble acts, but that the name of God was that which 



214 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

gave them reverence, power, glory, and beauty. Set there- 
fore the name of God and "thus saith the Lord" against 
all reasonings, defamings, and reproaches that either by 
the world or thy own heart thou findest to arise against 
thy duty ; and let his name and authority alone be a suf- 
ficient argument with thee, to behold the beauty that he 
hath put upon all his ways, and to inquire in his temple. 



Christians should so manage their time and the work 
that God hath appointed them to do for his name m this 
world, that they may not have part thereof to do when 
they should be departing this world; because, if they do 
not, dying will be a hard work with them, especially if 
God awakeneth them about their neglect of their duty. 
The way of God with his people is to visit their sins in this 
life ; and the worst time for thee to be visited by them is 
when thy life is smitten down as it were to the dust of 
death, even when all natural infirmities break in like a 
flood upon thee — sickness, fainting, pains, wearisomeness, 
and the like : now, I say, to be charged also with the 
neglect of duty when in no capacity to do it— yea, when 
perhaps so feeble, as scarce able to abide to hear thy dear- 
est friend in this life speak to thee — will not this make 
dying hard ? yea, when thou shalt seem both in thine own 
eyes and also in the eyes of others, to fall short of the king- 
dom of heaven for this and the other transgressions ; will 
not this make dying hard ? David found it hard when he 
cried, " spare me a little, that I may recover strength, 
before I go hence and be no more/' David at this time 
was chastened for some iniquity, yea, brought for his folly 
to the doors of the shadow of death. But here he could 
not enter without great distress of mind ; wherefore he 
cries out for respite, and time to do the will of God and the 
work allotted him. So again: " The pains of hell caught 
hold upon me, the sorrows of death compassed me about, 
and I found trouble and sorrow ; then I cried unto the 



OBEDIENCE REWARDED. 215 

Lord." Aye, this will make thee cry, though thou be as 
good as David. Wherefore learn by his sorrow, as he 
himself also learned at last to serve his own generation by 
the will of God, before he fell asleep. God can tell how 
to pardon thy sins, and yet make them such a bitter thing 
and so heavy a burden to thee that thou wouldst not, if 
thou wast but once distressed with it, come there again 
for all this world. Ah, it is easy with him to have this 
pardon in his bosom, even when he is breaking all thy 
bones and pouring out thy gall upon the ground — yea, to 
show himself then unto thee in so dreadful a majesty, that 
heaven and earth shall seem to thee to tremble at his 
presence. Let then the thoughts of this prevail with thee 
as a reason of great weight, to provoke thee to study to 
manage thy time and work in wisdom while thou art well. 



OBEDIENCE REWARDED. 

Keep those grounds and evidences that God hath given 
you of your call to be partakers of this love of Christ, with 
all clearness upon your hearts and in your minds. For he 
that lacks that sight of them, or a proof that they are true 
and good, can take but little comfort in this love. There 
is a great mystery in the way of God with his people. He 
will justify them without their works, he will pardon them 
for his Son's sake. But they that are careless, carnal, and 
not holy in their lives, shall have but little comfort of what 
he hath done, doth, and will do for them. 

Nor shall they have their evidences for heaven at hand, 
nor out of doubt with them ; yea, they shall walk without 
the sun, and have their comforts by bits and knocks ; while 
others sit at their Father's table, have liberty to go into the 
wine-cellar, rejoice at the sweet and pleasant face of their 
heavenly Father towards them, and know it shall go well 
with them at the end. 



Those that make conscience of walking in the com- 



216 RICHES OF BUNYAN; 

mandments of God, they shall be blessed with the bread 
of life, when others shall be hunger-bit. 



The greatest part of professors nowadays take up their 
time in contracting guilt and asking for pardon, and yet 
are not much the better. Whereas, if they had but the 
grace to add to their faith, virtue, etc., they might have 
more peace, live better lives, and not have their heads so 
often in a bag, as they have. " To him that ordereth his 
conversation aright, will I show the salvation of God." 



" And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty 
and five years. And Enoch walked with God, and was 
not, for God took him." Enoch therefore lived here but a 
while : he was too good to live long in this world ; the 
world was not worthy of him ; neither could he be spared 
so long out of heaven, for God took him. 

The end of walking with God, or the pathway thereof, 
leads men to heaven, to the enjoyment of the glory of God. 
Thus also it was with blessed Elijah; he followed God 
from place to place, till at length he was caught up into 
heaven. 



Those that shall be found, in the day of their resurrec- 
tion, the people of God most laborious for God while here, 
they shall at that day enjoy the greatest portion of God, or 
shall be possessed of most of the glory of the Godhead then. 
For that is the portion of the saints in general. And why 
shall he that doeth most for God in this world, enjoy most 
of him in that which is to come, but because by doing and 
acting, the heart and every faculty of the soul are enlarged 
and more capacitated, whereby more room is made for 
glory ? Every vessel of glory shall at that day be made 
full of it : but every one will not be capable to contain a 
like measure ; and so if they should have it communica- 
ted to them, would not be able to stand under it; for there 



SELF-EXAMINATION. 217 

is an eternal weight in the glory that saints shall then en- 
joy ; and every vessel must be at that day filled, that is, 
have its heavenly load of it. 



SELF-EXAMINATION. 

Examine : Dost thou labor after those qualifications that 
the Scriptures describe a child of God by — that is, faith, 
yea, the right faith, the most holy faith, the faith of the 
operation of God ? And also, dost thou examine whether 
there is a real growth of grace in thy soul, as love, zeal, 
self-denial, and a seeking by all means to attain, if possi- 
ble, to the resurrection of the dead ; that is, not to satisfy 
thyself until thou be dissolved and rid of this body of 
death, and be transformed into that glory that the saints 
shall be in after the resurrection-day ? 

And in the mean time, dost thou labor and take all op- 
portunities to walk as near as may be to the mark, though 
thou knowest thou canst not attain it perfectly ? Yet I 
say, thou dost aim at it, seek after it, press towards it, and 
hold on in thy race ; thou shunnest that which may any 
way hinder thee, and also closest in with what may any way 
further the same, knowing that that must be, or desiring 
that it should be. thine eternal frame ; and therefore, out 
of love and liking to it, thou dost desire and long after it, 
as being the thing that doth most please thy soul. 

Or how is it with thy soul ? Art thou such a one as 
regards not these things, but rather busiest thy thoughts 
about the things here below, following those things that 
have no scent of divine glory upon them ? If so, look to 
thyself; thou art an unbeliever, and so under the wrath of 
God, and wilt for certain fall into the same place of tor- 
ment that thy fellows have fallen into before thee, to the 
grief of thy own soul and thy everlasting destruction. 

Consider and regard these things, and lay them to thy 
heart before it be too late to recover thyself, by repenting 
of the one and desiring to close in with the other. 

Riches of Bunyan. \Q 



218 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Oh, I say, regard, regard ; for hell is hot, God's hand is 
up, the law is resolved to discharge against thy soul. The 
judgment-day is at hand ; the graves are ready to fly open ; 
the trumpet is near the sounding ; the sentence will ere 
long be past, and then you and I cannot call time again. 



Reckon with thy own heart every day before thou lie 
down to sleep, and cast up what thou hast received from 
God and done for him, and where thou hast also been 
wanting. This will beget praise and humility, and put 
thee upon redeeming the day that is past ; whereby thou 
wilt be able, through the continual supplies of grace, in 
some good measure to drive thy work before thee, and to 
shorten it as thy life doth shorten, and mayst comfortably 
live in the hope of bringing both ends sweetly together. 



WATCHFULNESS. 
He that will keep water in a sieve, must use more than 
ordinary diligence. Our heart is a leaky vessel; and there- 
fore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things 
which we have heard, lest at any time we should let 
them slip. 



CONSTITUTION-SINS. 
They that name the name of Christ, let them depart 
from their constitution-sin, or if you will, the sin that 
their temper most inclines them to. Every man is not 
alike inclined to the same sin, but some to one, and some 
to another. Now, let the man that professes the name 
of Christ religiously consider with himself, " Unto what 
sin or vanity am I most inclined ? is it pride ? is it cov- 
etousness? is it fleshly lust?" and let him labor by all 
means to leave off and depart from that. This is that 
which David called his own iniquity, and saith, " I was 
also upright before him, and I kept myself from mine 
iniquity." Psn. 18:23. Rightly are these two put to- 



CONSTITUTION- SINS. 219 

getlier, for it is not possible that he should be an upright 
man that indulgeth or countenaneeth his constitution-sin ; 
but on the contrary, he that keeps himself from that will 
be upright as to all the rest ; and the reason is, because if 
a man has grace to trample upon and mortify his darling, 
his bosom, his only sin, he will more easily and more 
heartily abhor and fly the rest. 

And indeed, if a man will depart from iniquity, he 
must depart from his darling sin first ; for as long as that 
is entertained, the other, at least those that are most suit- 
ing to that darling, will always be haunting of him. There 
is a man that has such and such haunt his house and spend 
his substance, and would be rid of them, but cannot ; but 
now, let him rid himself of that for the sake of which they 
haunt his house, and then he shall with ease be rid of 
them. Thus it is with sin. There is a man that is plagued 
with many sins, perhaps because he embraceth one ; well, 
let him turn that one out of doors, and that is the way to 
be rid of the rest. Keep thee from thy darling, thy bosom, 
thy constitution-sin. 

Among the motives to prevail with thee to fall in with 
this exhortation, are, 

1. There can no great change appear in thee, make 
what profession of Christ thou wilt, unless thou cast away 
thy bosom sin A man's constitution-sin is, as I may call it, 
his visible sin ; it is that by which his neighbors know him 
and describe him, whether it be pride, covetousness, light- 
ness, or the like. Now, if these abide with thee, though 
thou shouldst be much reformed in thy notions and in other 
parts of thy life, yet say thy neighbors, "He is the same 
man still : his faith has not saved him from his darling. 
He was proud before, and is proud still ; was covetous be- 
fore, and is covetous still ; was light and wanton before, and 
is so still ; he is the same man, though he has got a new 
mouth." But now, if thy constitution-sin be parted with, 
if thy darling be cast way, thy conversion is apparent ; it 



220 RICHES OF BITNYAN. 

is seen of all ; for the casting away of that is death to the 
rest, and ordinarily makes a change throughout. 

2. So long as thy constitution-sin remains, as winked 
at by thee, so long thou art a hypocrite before Grod, let 
thy profession be what it will ; also, when conscience shall 
awake and be commanded to speak to thee plainly what 
thou art, it will tell thee so, to thy no little vexation and 
perplexity. 



THE CHRISTIAN PROFESSOR ADMONISHED. 
thou professor ! thou lamp-carrier ! have a care and 
look to thyself; content not thyself with only that which 
will maintain thee in a profession, for that may be done 
without saving grace ; but I advise thee to go to Aaron, 
to Christ the trimmer of our lamps, and beg of him thy 
vessel full of oil, that is, grace for the seasoning of thy 
heart, that thou mayest have wherewith not only to bear 
thee up now, but at the day of the bridegroom's coming 
when many a lamp will go out and many a professor be 
left in the dark. 



Sin is in the best of men ; and as long as it is so, with- 
out great watchfulness and humble walking with God, 
we may be exposed to shame and suffering for it. It is 
possible for Christians to suffer for evil-doing, and there- 
fore let Christians beware ; it is possible for Christians to 
be brought to public justice for their faults, and therefore 
let Christians beware. 



A Christian can never be overcome unless he should 
yield of himself. 



There is no way to kill a man's righteousness but by 
his own consent. This Job's wife knew full well ; hence 
she tempted him to lay violent hands on his own integrity. 
Job 2 : 9. 



FAILINGS AND SINS OF CHRISTIANS. 221 

FAILINGS AND SINS OF CHRISTIANS. 

" And Noah began to be a husbandman, and he planted 
a vineyard. And he drank of the wine, and was drunken ; 
and he was uncovered within his tent." 

This is the blot in this good man's scutcheon; and a 
strange blot it is, that such a one as Noah should be thus 
overtaken with evil. One would have thought that Moses 
would now have begun with a relation of some eminent 
virtues and honorable actions of Noah, since now he was 
delivered from the death that overtook the whole world ; 
and was delivered, both he and his children, to possess the 
whole earth himself. Indeed, he stepped from the ark to 
the altar, as Israel of old did sing on the shore of the Red 
sea ; but as they, he soon forgot ; he rendered evil to God 
for good. 

Neither is Noah alone in this matter. Lot also, being 
delivered from that fire from heaven which burnt up Sodom 
and Gomorrah, falls soon after into lewdness. Gideon 
also, after he was delivered out of the hands of his ene- 
mies, took that very gold which God had given him as the 
spoil of them that hated him, and made himself idols 
therewith. 

What shall I say of David, and of Solomon also, who, 
after he had been twenty years at work for the service o{ 
the true God, both in building and preparing for his wor- 
ship, and in writing proverbs by divine inspiration, did 
after this make temples for idols, yea, almost for the gods 
of all countries ? Yea, he did it when he was old, when 
he should have been preparing for his grave and for 
eternity. 

All these were sins against mercies, yea, and doubtless 
against covenants and the most solemn resolutions to the 
contrary. For who can imagine but that when Noah was 
tossed with the flood, and Lot within the scent and smell 
of the fire and brimstone that burned down Sodom with 
his sons and daughters, and Gideon, when so fiercely en- 



222 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

gaged with so great an enemy, and delivered by so strange 
a hand, should in the most solemn manner both promise 
and vow to God ? But behold, now they in truth are de- 
livered and saved, they recompense all with sin : " Lord, 
what is man ? how abominable and filthy is man, who 
drinketh in iniquity like water !" 

Let these things teach us "to cease from man, whose 
breath is in his nostrils ; for wherein is he to be accounted 
of?" Indeed, it is a vain thing to build our faith upon the 
most godly man in the world, because he is subject to err; 
yea, better men than he have been so. If JSToah and Lot 
and Gideon and David and Solomon — who wanted not 
matter from arguments, and that of the strongest kind, as 
arguments that are drawn from mercy and goodness be, to 
engage to holiness and the fear of God — yet, after all, did 
so foully fall as we see, let us admire grace that any 
stand ; let the strongest fear, lest he fearfully fall ; and 
let no man but Jesus Christ himself be the absolute plat- 
form and pattern of faith and holiness : as the prophet saith, 
" Let us cease from man." 



THE BACKSLIDER. 
None knows the things that haunt the backslider's 
mind ; his new sins are all turned talking devils, threaten- 
ing devils, roaring devils, within him. Besides, he doubts 
of the truth of his first conversion, consequently he has it 
lying upon him as a strong suspicion, that there was noth- 
ing of truth in all his first experience ; and this also adds 
lead to his heels, and makes him come, as to sense and 
feeling, more heavily and with the greater difficulty, to God 
by Christ. As the faithfulness of other men kills him, he 
cannot see an honest, humble, holy, faithful servant of God, 
but he is pierced and wounded at the heart. " Aye," says 
be within himself, "that man fears God; that man hath 
faithfully followed God ; that man, like the elect angels, 
has kept his place ; but I am fallen from my station like a 



THE BACKSL1DEK. 223 

devil. That man honoreth God, edifieth the saints, con- 
vinceth the world and condemneth them, and is become 
' heir of the righteousness which is by faith.' But I have 
dishonored God, stumbled and grieved saints, made the 
world blaspheme, and, for aught I know, been the cause 
of the damnation of many." These are the things, I say, 
together with many more of the same kind, that come to 
him : yea, they will come with him, yea, and will stare 
him in the face, will tell him of his baseness and laugh 
him to scorn, all the way that he is coming to God by 
Christ — I know what I say — and this makes his coming 
to God by Christ hard and difficult to him. Shame cov- 
ereth his face all the way he comes. He doth not know 
what to do ; the God that he is returning to is the God 
that he has slighted, the God before whom he has pre- 
ferred the vilest lusts ; and he knows God knows it, and 
has before Him all his ways. 

The man that has been a backslider, and is returning 
to God, can tell strange stories, and yet such as are very 
true. No man was in the whale's belly, and came out 
again alive, but backsliding and returning Jonah ; conse-. 
quently no man could tell how he was there, what he felt 
there, what he saw there, and what workings of heart he 
had when he was there, so well as he. 



The returning again of the backslider gives a second 
testimony to the truth of man's state being by nature mis- 
erable, of the vanity of this world, of the severity of the 
law. certainty of death, and terribleness of judgment to 
come- His first coming to God by Christ told them so, 
but his second coming tells them so with a double con- 
firmation of the truth. "It is so," saith his first coming ; 
: - Oh, it is so/" saith his second. 

The backsliding of a Christian comes through the over- 
much persuading of Satan and lust, that the man was 
mistaken, and that there was no such horror in the things 



224 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

from which he fled, nor so much good in the things to 
which he hasted. " Turn again, fool," says the devil, 
" turn again to thy former course. I wonder what frenzy 
it was that drove thee to thy heels, and that made thee 
leave so much good behind thee, as other men find in the 
lusts of the flesh and the good of the world. As for the 
law, and death, and an imagination of the day of judg- 
ment, they are but mere scarecrows, set up by polite heads 
to keep the ignorant in subjection." "Well," says the 
backslider, " I will go back again and see ;" so, fool as he 
is, he goes back, and has all things ready to entertain him : 
his conscience sleeps, the world smiles, flesh is sweet, car- 
nal company compliments him, and all that can be got is 
presented to this backslider to accommodate him. But 
behold, he doth again begin to see his own nakedness, and 
he perceives that the law is whetting his axe : as for the 
world, he perceives it is a bubble ; he also smells the smell 
of brimstone, for God hath scattered it upon his tabernacle 
and it begins to burn within him. " Oh," saith he, " I am 
deluded ; Oh, I am ensnared. My first sight of things was 
.true. I see it so again." Now he begins to be for flying 
again to his first refuge : "0 God," saith he, "I am un- 
done ; I have turned from thy truth to lies ; I believed 
them such at first, and find them such at last : have mercy 
upon me, God." 

This, I say, is a testimony, a second testimony by the 
same man. 



" And him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast 
out." I shall here speak a word or two to him that is 
coming, after backsliding, to Jesus Christ for life. 

Thy way, thou sinner of a double dye, thy way is 
open to come to Jesus Christ. I mean thee, whose heart, 
after long backsliding, doth think of turning to him again. 
Thy way, I say, is open to him, as is the way of the other 
sorts of comers ; as appears by what follows. 



THE BACKSLIDER. 225 

1. Because the text makes no exception against thee. 
It doth not say, " And any one but a backslider ; any one 
but him." The text doth not thus object, but indefinitely 
openeth wide its golden arms to every coming soul, without 
the least exception. Therefore thou mayest come. And 
take heed that thou shut not that door against thy soul by 
unbelief, which God has opened by his grace. 

2. Nay, the text is so far from excepting against thy 
coming, that it strongly suggesteth that thou art one of 
the souls intended, thou coming backslider ; else why 
need that clause have been so inserted, " I will in no wise 
cast out ?" as if he should say, " Though those that come 
now are such as have formerly backslidden, I will in no 
wise cast away the fornicator, the covetous, the railer, the 
drunkard, or other common sinners, nor yet the backslider 
neither." 



If thou yet, instead of repenting and doing thy first 
works, dost remain a backslider, 

1 . Then remember that thou must die ; and remember 
also, that when the terrors of God, of death, and a back- 
slidden heart meet together, there v/ill be sad work in that 
soul : this is the man that hangeth tilting over the mouth 
of hell, while death is cutting the thread of his life. 

2. Remember, that though God doth sometimes, yea, 
often, receive backsliders, yet it is not always so. Some 
draw back unto perdition ; for, because they have flung up 
God and would none of him, he in justice flings up them 
and their souls for ever. Prov. 1 : 24-28. 



10* 



226 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 



XIII. THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 

They that will go to heaven must run for it, because, 
as the way is long, so the time in which they are to get to 
the end of it is very uncertain ; the time present is the only 
time : it may be thou hast no more time allotted thee than 
that thou now enjoyest: " Boast not thyself of to-morrow, 
for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth." Do not 
say, I have time enough to get to heaven seven years hence ; 
for I tell thee the bell may toll for thee before seven days 
more be ended ; and when death comes, away thou must 
go, whether thou art .provided or not ; and therefore look to 
it — make no delays — it is not good dallying with things of 
so great concernment as the salvation or damnation of thy 
soul. You know, he that hath a great way to go in a little 
time, and less by half than he thinks of, he had need to 
run for it. 

They that will have heaven must run for it, because 
the devil, the law, sin, death, and hell, follow them. 
There is never a poor soul that is going to heaven, but the 
devil, the law, sin, death, and hell make after that soul. 
"Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about 
seeking whom he may devour." And I will assure you 
the devil is nimble ; he can run apace, he is light of foot, 
he hath overtaken many, he hath turned up their heels, 
and hath given them an everlasting fall. Also the law, 
that can shoot a great way ; have a care thou keep out of 
the reach of those great guns the ten commandments. 
Hell also hath a wide mouth ; it can stretch itself further 
than you are aware of. And as the angel said to Lot, 
' k Take heed ; look not behind thee, neither tarry thou in 
all the plain" — that is, anywhere between this and the 
mountain — " lest thou be consumed ;" so say I to thee, 
Take heed ; tarry not, lest either the devil, hell, death, or 
the fearful curses of the law of God, do overtake thee and 



THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 227 

throw thee down in the midst of thy sins ; then thou, as 
well as I, wouldst say, They that will have heaven must 
run for it. 

They that go to heaven must run for it, because, per- 
chance, the gates of heaven may he shut shortly. Some- 
times sinners have not heaven's gates open to them so long 
as they suppose, and if they he once shut against a man, 
they are so heavy that all the men in the world and all 
the angels in heaven are not able to open them. " I shut, 
and no man can open," saith Christ. And how if thou 
shouldst come hut one quarter of an hour too late ? I tell 
thee it will cost thee an eternity to bewail thy misery in. 
Francis Spira* can tell thee what it is to stay till the gate 
of mercy be quite shut ; or to run so lazily that they be 
shut before thou get within them. What, to be shut out — 
what, out of heaven ! Sinner, rather than lose it, run for 
it ; yea, and " so run that thou may est obtain." 



Be not daunted though thou meetest with never so many 
discouragements in thy journey thither. That man that is 
resolved for heaven, if Sata'n cannot win him by flatteries, 
he will endeavor to weaken him by discouragements, say- 
ing, Thou art a sinner, thou hast broke God's law, thou art 
not elected, thou comest too late, the day of grace is past, 
God doth not care for thee, thy heart is naught, thou art 
lazy — with a hundred other discouraging suggestions. 
Then thou must encourage thyself with the freeness of the 
promises, the tender-heartedness of Christ, the freeness of 

* Francis Spira, an eminent lawyer of Padua, Italy, flourished in 
the first half of the sixteenth century. . He embraced the reformed 
religion, and advocated evangelical sentiments with very great zeal. 
But at length, terrified by the threats of the papal church, he made a 
public recantation of his religious opinions. His apostasy from the 
faith threw him into despair, and amid intolerable mental agonies, 
refusing all sustenance and comfort, and affirming his certain condem- 
nation for having abjured the known truth, he miserably expired. 
See Sleidan's History of the Reformation, page 475. 



228 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

his invitations to come in, the greatness of the sin of others 
that have been pardoned, and that the same God through 
the sa.me Christ holdeth forth the same grace free as ever. 
If these be not thy meditations, thou wilt draw very 
heavily in the way to heaven if thou do not give up all for 
lost; therefore I say, take heart in thy journey, and say 
to them that seek thy destruction, " Rejoice not against 
me, my enemy, for when I fall I shall arise, when I sit 
in darkness the Lord shall be a light unto me." 



Let me give thee a few motives along with thee. It 
may be they will be as good as a pair of spurs to prick on 
thy lumpish heart in this rich journey. 

1. Consider there is no way but this; thou must either 
win or lose. If thou winnest, then heaven, God, Christ, 
glory, ease, peace, life, yea, life eternal, are thine ; thou 
shalt be made equal to the angels in heaven; thou shalt 
sorrow no more, sigh no more, feel no more pain ; thou 
shalt be out of the reach of sin, hell, death, the devil, the 
grave, and w r hatever else may endeavor thy hurt. 

But contrariwise, if thou lose, then thy loss is heaven, 
glory, God, Christ, ease, peace, and whatever else tends to 
make eternity comfortable to the saints ; besides, thou pro- 
curest eternal death, sorrow, pain, blackness and darkness, 
fellowship with devils, together with the everlasting dam- 
nation of thy own soul. 

2. Consider that this devil, this hell, death, and dam- 
nation follow after thee as hard as they can, and have 
their commission so to do by the law, against which 
thou hast sinned ; and therefore for thy soul's sake make 
haste. 

3. If they seize upon thee before thou get to the city 
of refuge, they will put an everlasting stop to thy journey. 
This also cries, Hun for it. 

4. Know also, that now heaven-gates, the heart of 
Christ with his arms are wide open to receive thee 



THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 229 

methinks that this consideration, that the devil followeth 
after to destroy, and that Christ standeth open-armed to 
receive, should make thee reach out and fly with all haste 
and speed ! 

5. Keep thine eyes upon the prize : be sure that thine 
eyes he continually upon the profit thou art like to get. 
The reason why men are so apt to faint in their race for 
heaven, lies chiefly in either of these two things : 

(1.) They do not seriously consider the worth of the 
prize ; or else if they do, they are afraid it is too good for 
them. Therefore keep thine eye much upon the excellen- 
cy, the sweetness, the beauty, the comfort, the peace that 
is to be had there by those that win the prize. 

(2.) And do not let the thoughts of the rareness of the 
place make thee say in thy heart, This is too good for me ; 
for I tell thee, heaven is prepared for whosoever \f ill accept 
of it, and they shall be entertained with hearty good wel- 
come. 

6. Think much of them that are gone before ; how 
safe they are in the arms of Jesus. Would they be here 
again for a thousand worlds ? Or if they were, would 
they be afraid that God would not make them welcome ? 
What would they judge of thee if they knew thy heart 
began to fail thee in thy journey, or thy sins began to allure 
thee and to persuade thee to stop thy race ? Would they 
not call thee a thousand fools, and say, that he did but 
see what we see, feel what we feel, and taste of the dainties 
that we taste of? if he were one quarter of an hour to 
behold, to feel, to taste, and enjoy but the thousandth part 
of what we enjoy, what would he do ? What would he 
suffer ? What would he leave undone \ Would he favor 
sin ? Would he love this world below ? Would he be afraid 
of friends, or shrink at the most fearful threatenings that 
the greatest tyrants could invent to give him ? Nay, those 
who have had but a sight of these things by faith, when 
they have been as far off from them as heaven from earth, 



230 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

yet they have been able to say with a comfortable and 
merry heart as the bird that sings in the spring, that this 
and more shall not stop them from running to heaven. 
Sometimes when my base heart hath been inclining to this 
world, and to loiter in my journey towards heaven, the very 
consideration of the glorious saints and angels in heaven 
hath caused me to rush forward — to disdain these poor, 
low, empty, beggarly things, and say to my soul, Come 
soul, let us not be weary ; let us see what this heaven is ; 
let us even venture all for it, and try if that will quit the 
cost. Surely Abraham, David, Paul, and the rest of the 
saints of God, were as wise as any are now, and yet they 
lost all for this glorious kingdom. 

7. To encourage thee a little further, set to work, and 
when thou hast run thyself down weary, then the Lord Je- 
sus will take thee up and carry thee. Is not this enough 
to make any poor soul begin his race ? Thou perhaps cri- 
est, " 0, but I am feeble, I am lame ;" well, but Christ has 
a bosom ; consider, therefore, when thou hast run thyself 
down weary, he will put thee in his bosom. " He shall 
gather the lambs with his arms, and carry them in his 
bosom." This is the way that fathers take to encourage 
their children, saying, Hun, sweet babe, until thou art 
weary, and then I will take thee up and carry thee. 

8. Or else he will convey new strength from heaven 
into thy soul. 

9. Again, methinks the very industry of the devil, and 
the industry of his servants, should make you that have a 
desire to heaven and happiness, run apace. Why, the 
devil he will lose no time, spare no pains, also neither will 
his servants, both^o seek the destruction of themselves and 
others ; and shall not we be as industrious for our own sal- 
vation ? Shall the world venture the damnation of their 
souls for a poor corruptible crown, and shall not we ven- 
ture the loss of a few trifles for an eternal crown ? Shall 
they venture the loss of eternal friends, as God to love, 



THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 231 

Christ to redeem, the Holy Spirit to comfort, heaven for 
habitation, saints and angels for company, and all this to 
get and hold communion with sin and this world, and a 
few base wretches like themselves ? And ehall not we la- 
bor as hard, run as fast, seek as diligently, nay, a hundred 
times more diligently, for the company of these glorious 
eternal friends, though with the loss of such as these, 
nay, with the loss of a thousand times better than these 
poor, low, base, contemptible things ? Shall it be said at 
the last day, that wicked men made more haste to hell 
than you did make to heaven ; that they spent more hours, 
days, and that early and late, for hell, than you spent for 
that which is ten thousand thousand of thousand times bet- 
ter ? let it not be so, but run with all might and main. 



Is the soul such an excellent thing, and is the loss 
thereof so unspeakably great ? Then this commends those 
for the wise ones that above all business concern them- 
selves with the salvation of their souls ; those that make 
all other matters but things by the by, and the salvation of 
their soul the one thing needful. 

Let me then encourage those that are of this mind to 
be strong and hold on their way. Soul, thou hast chosen 
right ; I will say of thy choice, as David said of Goliath's 
sword, " There is none like that, give it me." 

But who told thee that thy soul was such an excellent 
thing as by thy practice thou declarest thou believest it to 
be ? What, set more by thy soul than by all the world ? 
"What, cast a world behind thy back for the welfare of a 
soul ! Is not this to play the fool in the account of sin- 
ners, while angels wonder at and rejoice for thy wisdom ? 

What a thing is this, that thy soul and its welfare 
should be more in thy esteem than all these glories where- 
with the eyes of the world are dazzled ! Surely, thou hast 
looked upon the sun, and that makes gold look like a clod 
of clay in thine eyesight. 



232 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

But who put the thoughts of the excellencies of the 
things that are eternal^-I say, who put the thoughts of 
the excellency of those things into thy mind in this wanton 
age, in an age wherein the thoughts of eternal life and the 
salvation of the soul are with too many like the Morocco 
ambassador* and his men of strange faces, in strange hab- 
its, with strange gestures and behaviors, monsters to be- 
hold ? 

But where hadst thou that heart that gives entertain- 
ment to these thoughts, these heavenly thoughts ? These 
thoughts are like the French Protestants,! banished thence 

* "The Morocco ambassador." Evelyn, who lived in the times of 
Charles I., Cromwell. Charles II., and William, refers in his "Diary" 
to this ambassador, named Hamet. When presented to the king, he 
and his retinue were " clad in the Moorish habite, cassocks of colored 
cloth or silk, with buttons and loopes ; over this an alhaga or white 
woolen mantle, so large as to wrap both head and body ; a shash or 
small turban; naked legg'd and armed, but with leather socks like 
the Turks ; rich scymeters, and large calico-sleeved shirts. The am- 
bassador had a string of pearls oddly woven in the turban. Their 
presents were lions and estridges (ostriches.) But the concourse and 
tumult of the people was intolerable, so as the officers could keep no 
order." 

t By the famous edict of Nantes, which was granted the Hugue- 
nots by Henry IV., they were allowed liberty of conscience and the 
free exercise of religion. Louis XIV., grandson of Henry, after a se- 
ries of arbitrary infractions of that edict by his father and himself at 
the instigation of the Jesuits, at length in 1685 abrogated it, and ban- 
ished the Protestants from the kingdom under circumstances of aggra- 
vated cruelty. Great numbers of them were dispersed through all the 
countries of Europe. Evelyn, in his Diary, says that in 16S5, "there 
had now been numbered to passe through Geneva onely forty thousand 
towards Swisserland. In Holland, Denmark, and all Germany were 
dispersed some hundred thousands, besides those in England." In the 
Memoirs of the Reformation in France prefixed to Saurins' Sermons, 
it is stated that eight hundred thousand were banished from France, 
and that they carried with them more than twenty millions of prop- 
erty. The refugees charged their sufferings on the religion of Rome, 
for Pope Innocent XI. highly approved of this persecution. He wrote 
a brief to the king, assuring him that what he had done against the 
heretics of his kingdom would be immortalized by the eulogies of the 



THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 233 

where they willingly would have harbor : how came they 
to thy house, to thy heart, and to find entertainment in thy 
soul ? The Lord keep them in every imagination of the 
thoughts of thy heart for ever, and incline thine heart to 
seek him more and more. 

And since the whole world have slighted and despised 
and counted foolish the thoughts wherewith thy soul is ex- 
ercised, what strong and mighty supporter is it upon and 
with which thou bearest up thy spirit, and takest encour- 
agement in this thy forlorn, unoccupied, and singular way, 
for so I dare say it is with the most ? But certainly it is 
something above thyself, and that is more mighty to up- 
hold thee than is the power, rage, and malice of all the 
world to cast thee down, or else thou couldst not bear up, 
now the stream and the force thereof are against thee. 

Objection. " I know my soul is an excellent thing, and 
that the world to come and its glories, even in the smallest 
glimpse thereof, do swallow up all the world that is here ; 
my heart also doth greatly desire to be exercised about the 
thoughts of eternity, and I count myself never better than 
when my poor heart is filled with them ; and as for the rage 
and fury of this world, it swayeth very little with me, for 
my heart is come to a point ; but yet for all that, I meet 
with many discouragements, and such things as indeed do 
weaken my strength in the way." 

But, brave soul, pray tell me what the things are that 
discourage thee, and that weaken thy strength in the 
way. 

" "Why, the amazing greatness of this my enterprise. 1 

Catholic church. He delivered a discourse in the Consistory in 1689, 
in which he said, " The most Christian king's zeal and piety did won- 
derfully appear in extirpating heresy." He ordered the Te Deum to 
he sung. Evelyn says, " I was show'd the harangue which the bishop 
of Valentia on PJione made in the name of the cleargie, celebrating 
the French king for persecuting the poor Protestants ; with this ex- 
pression in it : l His victory over heresy was greater than all the con- 
quests of Alexander and Caesar.' " 



234 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

am now pursuing things of the highest, the greatest, the 
most enriching nature, even eternal things ; and the 
thoughts of the greatness of them drowned me : for when 
the heat of my spirit in the pursuit after them is a little 
returned and abated, methinks I hear myself talking thus 
to myself: Fond fool, canst thou imagine that such a gnat, 
a flea as thou art, can take and possess the heavens, and 
mantle thyself up in the eternal glories ? If thou makest 
first a trial of the successfulness of thy endeavors upon 
things far lower, more base, but much more easy to obtain, 
as crowns, kingdoms, earldoms, dukedoms, gold, silver, or 
the like, how vain are these attempts of thine, and yet 
thou thinkest to possess thy soul of heaven. Away, away ! 
by the height thereof, thou may est well conclude it is far 
above, out of thy reach ; paid by the breadth thereof, it is 
too large for thee to grasp ; and by the nature of the ex- 
cellent glory thereof, too good for thee to possess. These 
are the thoughts that sometimes discourage me, and that 
weaken my strength in the way." 

Answer. The greatness of thy undertakings does but 
show the nobleness of thy soul, in that it cannot, will not 
be content with such low and dry things as the base-born 
spirits that are in the world can and do content them- 
selves withal. 

And as to the greatness of the things thou aimest at, 
though they be, as they are. indeed, things that have not 
their like, yet they are not too big for God to give ; and he 
has promised to give them to the soul that seeketh him ; 
yea, he hath prepared the kingdom, and laid up in the 
kingdom of heaven the things that thy soul longeth for, 
presseth after, and cannot be content without. 



Art thou got into the right way ? Art thou in Chi 
righteousness ? Do not say, Yes, in thy heart, when in truth 
there is no such matter. It is a dangerous thing, you know, 
for a man to think he is in the right way, when he is in 



THE CHRISTIAN RACE. 235 

the wrong. It is the next way for him to lose his way; 
and not only so, but if he run for heaven, as thou sayest 
thou dost, even to lose that too. this is the misery of 
most men, to persuade themselves that they are right, 
when they never had one foot in the way ! The Lord 
give thee understanding here, or else thou art undone for 
ever. Prithee, soul, search when it was thou turnedst out 
of thy sins and righteousness into the righteousness of Jesus 
Christ. I say, dost thou see thyself in him ; and is he 
more precious to thee than the whole world ? Is thy mind 
always musing on him ; and lovest thou to be walking 
with him ? Dost thou count his company more precious 
than the whole world ? Dost thou count all things but 
poor, lifeless, empty, vain things, without communion with 
him ? Doth his company sweeten all things ; and his ab- 
sence imbitter all things ? Soul, I beseech thee be serious, 
and lay it to heart, and do not take things of such weighty 
concernment as the salvation or damnation of thy soul, 
without good ground. 

Art thou unladen of the things of this world ; as pride, 
pleasures, profits, lusts, vanities ? What, dost thou think 
to run fast enough, with the world, thy sins and lusts in 
thy heart ? I tell thee, soul, they that have laid all aside, 
every weight, every sin, and are got into the nimblest pos- 
ture, they find work enough to run; so to run as to hold 
out. To run through all the opposition, all the jostles, 
all the rubs, over all the stumbling-blocks, over all the 
snares, from all the entanglements that the devil, sin, the 
world, and their own hearts lay before them — I tell thee, 
if thou art going heavenward, thou wilt find it no small or 
easy matter. 

Art thou therefore discharged or unladen of these things ? 
]Never talk of going to heaven if thou art not. It is to be 
feared thou wilt be found among the "many that shall seek 
to enter in and shall not be able." If so, then in the next 
place, what will become of them that are grown weary 



236 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

before they are got half-way thither ? Why, man, it is he 
that holdeth out to the end, that must be saved ; it is he 
that overcometh, that shall inherit all things ; it is not 
every one that begins. Agrippa took a fair step for a sud- 
den ; he steps almost into the bosom of Christ in less than 
half an hour. "Almost," saith he to Paul, " thou per- 
suadest me to be a Christian." Ah, it was but almost; 
and so he had as good have never been a ivhit ; he stepped 
fair indeed, but yet he stepped short ; he was hot while he 
was at it, but he was quickly out of wind. this but 
aTmost ! I tell you, this but almost lost his soul. Methinks 
I have seen sometimes how these poor wretches that get 
but almost to heaven, how fearfully their almost and their 
but almost will torment them in hell ; when they shall 
cry out in the bitterness of their souls, saying, " Almost a 
Christian. I was almost got into the kingdom, almost out 
of the hands of the devil, almost out of my sins, almost 
from under the curse of God ; almost, and that was all ; 
almost, but not altogether. that I should be almost at 
heaven, and should not go quite through !" Friend, it is a 
sad thing to sit down before we are in heaven, and to grow 
weary before we come to the place of rest ; and if it should 
be thy case, I am sure thou dost not so run as to obtain. 



Evangelist. The crown is before you, and it is an in- 
corruptible one ; " So run, that you may obtain it." Soma 
there be that set out for this crown, and after they have 
gone far for it, another comes in and takes it from them : 
" Hold fast, therefore, that ye have ; let no man take your 
crown :" you are not yet out of the gunshot of the devil ; 
"you have not resisted unto blood, striving against sin:" 
let the kingdom be ahvays before you, and believe stead- 
fastly concerning things that are invisible ; let nothing 
that is on this side the other world get within you ; and, 
above all, look well to your own hearts and to the lusts 
thereof, for they are " deceitful above all things, and des- 



AFFLICTION. 237 

perately wicked :" set your faces like a flint ; you have all 
power in heaven and earth on your side. 



Though the way to heaven be but one, yet there are 
many crooked lanes and by-paths that shoot down upon it, 
as I may say. And again, notwithstanding the kingdom 
of heaven be the chief city, yet usually those by-paths are 
most beaten, most travellers go those ways ; and therefore 
the way to heaven is hard to be found, and as hard to be 
kept in, by reason of these. Yet, nevertheless, it is in this 
case as it was with the harlot of Jericho ; she had one 
scarlet thread tied in her window, by which her house 
was known : so it is here ; the scarlet streams of Christ's 
blood run throughout the way to the kingdom of heaven ; 
therefore mind that : see if thou do find the besprinkling 
of the blood of Christ in the way ; and if thou do, be of 
good cheer, thou art in the right way. 



XIV. TRIALS OF THE CHRISTIAN 

AFFLICTION-ITS NATURE AND BENEFITS. 

The school of the cross is the school of light ; it dis- 
covers the world's vanity, baseness, and wickedness, and 
lets us see more of God's mind. Out of dark afflictions 
comes a spiritual light. 



In times of affliction, we commonly meet with the 
sweetest experiences of the love of God. 



The end of affliction is the discovery of sin ; and of 
that, to bring us to a Saviour. 



Doth not God ofttimes even take occasion, by, the hard- 
est of things that come upon us, to visit our souls with the 



238 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

comforts of his Spirit, to lead us into the glory of his word, 
and to cause us to savor that love that he has had for us, 
even from before the world began till now ? A nest of 
bees and honey did Samson find even in^ the belly of that 
lion that roared upon him. And is all this no good ; or 
can we do without such holy appointments of God ? Let 
these things be considered by us, and let us learn like 
Christians to kiss the rod, and love it. 



The lamps of Gideon were discovered, when his sol- 
diers' pitchers were broken : if our pitchers are broken for 
the Lord and his gospel's sake, those lamps will then be 
discovered that before lay hid and unseen. 



People that live high and in idleness bring diseases 
upon the body ; and they that live in all fulness of gospel 
ordinances, and are not exercised with trials, grow gross, 
are diseased and full of bad humors in their souls. 



The righteous are apt to be like well-fed children, too 
wanton, if God should not appoint them some fasting-days. 



The Lord useth his flail of tribulation to separate the 
chaff from the wheat. 



Observe Paul : he died daily, he was always delivered 
unto death, he despaired of life. And this is the way to 
be prepared for any calamity. When a man thinks he 
has only to prepare for an assault by footmen, how shall 
he contend with horses ; or if he looks no further than to 
horses, what will he do at the swellings of Jordan ? 



Oh, when every providence of God unto thee is like the 
messengers of Job, and the last to bring more heavy tidings 
than all that went before him ; when life, estate, wife, 
children, body and soul, and all at once, seem to be struck 



AFFLICTION. 239 

at by heaven and earth, here are hard lessons — now to be- 
have myself even as a weaned child: now to say, "The 
Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away ; blessed be the 
name of the Lord." 

Our afflictions work out for us a far more exceeding 
and eternal weight of glory. Our afflictions do it, not only 
because there is laid up a reward for the afflicted accord- 
ing to the measure of affliction, but because afflictions, and 
so every service of God, make the heart more deep, more 
experimental, more knowing and profound, and so, more 
able to hold, to contain, and bear more. 



Let Christians beware that they set not times for God, 
lest all men see their folly. "It is not for you to know the 
times and the seasons which the Father hath put in his 
own power ;" yea, I say again, take heed lest, for thy set- 
ting of God a seven-day's time, he set thee so many as 
seven times seven. 

God's time is the time, the best time, because it is the 
time appointed by him for the proof and trial of our graces, 
and that in which so much of the rage of the enemy and 
of the power of God's mercy, may the better be discovered 
unto us. "I the Lord do hasten it in his time ;" not be- 
fore, though we were the signet upon his hand. 



Afflictions are governed by God, both as to time, num- 
ber, nature, and measure. In measure, when it shooteth 
forth, thou wilt debate with it : "He stayeth his rough 
wind in the day of his east wind." Our times, therefore, 
and our conditions in these times, are in the hand of God, 
yea, and so are our souls and bodies, to be kept and pre- 
served from the evil while the rod of God is upon us. 



Ease and release from persecution and affliction come 
not by chance, or by the jrood moods and gentle dispositions 



240 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

of men ; but the Lord doth hold them back from sin, the 
Lord restraineth them. 2 Chron. 18 : 31. 



" And he stayed yet other seven days." It is not God's 
way with his people to show them all their troubles at 
once, but first he shows them a part : first, forty days, after 
that, seven other days, and yet again, seven days more ; 
that coming upon them by piecemeal, they may the better 
be able to travel through them. When Israel was in 
affliction in Egypt, they knew not the trial which would 
meet them at the Red sea. Again, when they had gone 
through that, they little thought that yet for forty years 
they must be tempted and proved in the wilderness. 



"And Noah removed the covering of the ark, and 
looked ;" the failing again of his expected comforter caused 
him to be up and doing. Probably he had not as yet un- 
covered the ark, that is, to look round about him, if the 
dove, by returning, had pleased his humor ; but she fail- 
ing, he stirs up himself. 

Thus it should also be with the Christian now. Doth 
the dove forbear to come to thee with a leaf in her bill as 
before ? Let not this make thee sullen and mistrustful, 
but uncover the ark and look ; and by looking, thou shalt 
see a further testimony of what thou receivest by the first 
manifestations. " He looked, . and behold the earth was 
dry." 



God doth not let us see the hills for our help before we 
have first of all seen them drowned. Look not to them, 
therefore, while the water is at the rising ; but if they begin 
to cease their raging, if they begin to fall, and with that 
the tops of the mountains be seen, you may look upon them 
with comfort ; they are tokens of God's deliverance. Gen. 8. 



It was requisite that the hills, Gen. 7 : 19, should be 



AFFLICTION. 241 

covered, that Noah might not have confidence in them ; 
but surely this dispensation of God was a heart-shaking 
providence to Noah and them that were with him ; for 
here indeed was his faith tried, there was no hill left in 
all the world ; now were his carnal helpers gone, there 
was none shut up or left. Now therefore, if they could 
rejoice, it must he only in the power of God. 



Noah was to have respect in his deliverance not only 
to himself and family, but to the good of all the world. 
Men's spirits are too narrow for the mind of God, when 
their chief end, or their only design in their enjoying this 
or the other mercy, is for the sake of their own selves only. 
It cannot be according to God, that such desires should 
be encouraged. "None of us liveth unto himself;" why, 
then, should we desire life only for ourselves ? 

The church cries out thus : " God be merciful to us and 
bless us, and cause his face to shine upon us." Why? 
" That thy way may be known upon earth, and thy saving 
health among all nations." So David : " Restore unto me 
the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free 
Spirit ; then will I teach transgressors thy ways, and sin- 
ners shall be converted unto thee." 

So then, we must not desire to come out of trials and 
afflictions alone or by ourselves, but that in our deliverance 
the salvation of many may be concerned. 

In every affliction and persecution, the devil's design is 
to impair Christ's kingdom ; wherefore, no marvel that 
God designs in our deliverance the impairing and lessening 
the kingdom of sin and Satan. Wherefore, thou church 
of God, which art now upon the waves of affliction and 
temptation, when thou comest out of the furnace, if thou 
come out at the bidding of God, there shall come out with 
thee the fowl, the beast, and abundance of creeping things. 
Gen. 8 : 17. "0 Judah, he hath set a harvest for thee, 
when I returned the captivity of my people." 

TT:rhps of Bun van. 



242 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

PERSECUTION. 

There are several degrees of suffering for righteousness : 
there is the scourge of the tongue, the ruin of an estate, the 
loss of liberty, a jail, a gibbet, a stake, a dagger. Now 
answerable to these are the comforts of the Holy Ghost 
prepared, like to like, part proportioned to part ; only the 
consolations are said to abound. 2 Cor. 1:5. 

But the lighter the sufferings are, the more difficult it 
is to judge of the comforts of the Spirit of God ; for it is 
common for a man to be comfortable under sufferings when 
he suffereth but little, and knows also that his enemy can 
touch his flesh, his estate, or the like, but little. And this 
maybe the joy of the flesh, the result of reason ; and may 
be very much, if not altogether, without a mixture of the 
joy of the Holy Ghost therewith. The more deep, there- 
fore, and the more dreadful the sufferings are, the more 
clearly are seen the comforts of the Spirit. When a man 
has comfort where the flesh is dead, stirreth not, and can 
do nothing ; when a man can be comfortable at the loss of 
all ; when he is under sentence of death, or at the place of 
execution — if yet a man's cause, a man's conscience, the 
promise, and the Holy Ghost, have all one comfortable 
voice, and do all together with their trumpets make one 
sound in the soul, then good are the comforts of God and 
his Spirit 

There are several degrees of sufferings ; wherefore it is 
not to be expected that he that suffers but little should 
partake of the comforts that are prepared for them that 
suffer much. He that has only the scourge of the tongue, 
knows not what are the comforts that are prepared for him 
that meets with the scourge of the whip. And how should 
a man know what manner of comforts the Holy Ghost 
doth use to give at the jail and the gibbet, when himself 
for righteousness never was there ? 



Persecution of the godly was never intended of God for 



PERSECUTION. 243 

their destruction, but for their glory, and to make them 
shine the more when they are beyond this valley of the 
shadow of death. 



We that are Christians have been trained up by his 
Son in his school this many a day, and have been told what 
a God our Father is, what an arm he has, and with what 
a voice he can thunder ; how he can deck himself with 
majesty and excellency, and array himself with beauty 
and glory ; how he can cast abroad the rage of his wrath, 
and behold every one that is proud and abase him. Have 
we not talked of what he did at the Red sea and in the 
land of Ham, many years ago ; and have we forgot him 
now ? Have we not vaunted and boasted of our God, both 
in church, pulpit, and books, and spake to the praise of 
them that attempted to drive antichrist out of the world 
with their lives and their blood instead of stones ; and are 
we afraid of our God ? He was God, a Creator, then ; and 
is he not God now ? and will he not be as good to us as to 
them that have gone before us ? or would we limit him 
to appear in such ways as only smile upon our flesh, and 
have him stay and not show himself in his heart-shaking 
dispensations until we are dead and gone ? What if we 
must now go to heaven, and what if he is thus come to 
fetch us to himself? If we have been as wise as serpents 
and innocent as doves — if we can say, Neither against the 
law of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor against 
Caesar, have we offended any thing at all — of what should 
we be afraid ? Let heaven and earth come together ; I 
dare say they will not hurt us. 



Religion that is pure is a hot thing ; and it usually 
burns the fingers of those that fight against it. 



Ah. when God makes the bed, he must needs lie easy 
whom weakness hath cast thereon : a blessed pillow hath 



244 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

that man for his head, though to all beholders it is hard as 
a stone. Psa. 41 : 1-3. 



It is as ordinary as for the light to shine, for God to 
make black and dismal dispensations usher in bright and 
pleasing. 



Christian reader, let me beg of thee that thou wilt not 
be offended either with God or men, if the cross is laid 
heavy upon thee. Not with God, for he doeth nothing 
without a cause ; nor with men, for they are the hand of 
God : and will they, nill they, they are the servants of 
God to thee for good. Psa. 17:14; Jer. 24:5. Take, 
therefore, what comes from God by them thankfully. If 
the messenger that brings it is glad that it is in his power 
to do thee hurt and to afflict thee, if he skips for joy at thy 
calamity, be sorry for him, pity him, and pray to thy Father 
for him : he is ignorant, and understandeth not the judg- 
ment of thy God ; yea, he showeth by this his behavior, 
that though he as God's ordinance serveth thee by afflict- 
ing thee, yet means he nothing less than to destroy thee : 
by the which also he prognosticates before thee that he is 
working out his own damnation by doing thee good. Lay 
therefore the woful state of such to heart, and render him 
that which is good for his evil, and love for his hatred 
to thee ; then shalt thou show that thou art moved by a 
spirit of holiness, and art like thy heavenly Father. And 
be it so, that thy pity and prayers can do such a one no 
good, yet they must light somewhere, or return again, as 
ships come laden from the Indies, full of blessings into 
thine own bosom. 



Poor man, thou hast thy time to be afflicted by thy 
enemies, that thy golden graces may shine the more ; thou 
art in the fire and they blow the bellows. But wouldst 
thou change places with them? Wouldst thou sit upon 



PERSECUTION. 245 

their place of ease ? Dost thou desire to be with them ? 
rest thyself contented ; in thy patience possess thy soul, 
and pity and bewail them in the condition in which they 



The cup that God's people in all ages have drank of, 
even the cup of affliction and persecution, it is not in the 
hand of the enemy, but in the hand of God ; and he, not 
they, poureth out of the same. 



There are but two ways of obeying : the one to do that 
which I in my conscience do believe that I am bound to 
do, actively; and where I cannot obey actively, there I 
am willing to lie down and to suffer what they shall do 
unto me. 



A Christian, when he sees trouble coming upon him, 
"should not fly in the face of the instrument that brings, 
but in the face of the cause of its coming. Now the cause 
is thyself, thy base self, thy sinful self, and thy unworthy 
carriages towards God under all the mercy, patience, and 
long-suffering that God has bestowed upon thee, and exer- 
cised towards thee. Here thou mayest quarrel, and be re- 
venged, and spare not, so thou take vengeance in a right 
way ; and thou wilt do so, when thou takest it by godly 
sorrow. 1 Cor. 7 : 10, 11. 



It is a rare thing to suffer aright, and to have thy spirit 
in suffering beat only against God's enemy, sin. 



Let them that are God's sufferers pluck up a good 
heart ; let them not be afraid to trust God with their souls, 
and with their eternal concerns. Let them cast all their 
care upon God, for he careth for them. 

"But I am in the dark." I answer, never stick at 
that. It is most bravely done to trust God with the soul 



246 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

in the dark, and to resolve to serve God for nothing, rather 
than give out. Not to see and yet to believe, and to be a 
follower of the Lamb and yet to be at uncertainty what 
we shall have at last, argues love, fear, faith, and an 
honest mind, and gives the greatest sign of one that hath 
true sincerity in his soul. It was this that made Job and 
Peter so famous ; and the want of it took away much of 
the glory of the faith of Thomas. Wherefore, believe verily 
that God is ready, willing ; yea, that he looks for and ex- 
pects that thou, who art a sufferer, shouldst commit the 
keeping of thy soul to him as unto a faithful Creator. 



Is there nothing in dark providences, for the sake of 
the sight and observation of which such a day may be 
rendered lovely, when it is upon us ? Is there nothing of 
God, of his wisdom and power and goodness, to be seen 
in thunder and lightning, in hailstones, in storms and dark- 
ness and tempests ? Why then is it said, he hath his way* 
in the whirlwind and storm ? And why have God's ser- 
vants of old made such notes, and observed from them such 
excellent and wonderful things ? There is that of God to 
be seen in such a day, which cannot be seen in another. 
His power in holding up some, his wrath in leaving oth- 
ers; his making shrubs to stand, and his suffering cedars 
to fall ; his infatuating the counsels of men, and his making 
the devil to outwit himself; his giving his presence to his 
people, and his leaving his foes in the dark ; his discovering 
the uprightness of the hearts of his sanctified ones, and lay- 
ing open the hypocrisy of others, is a working of spiritual 
wonders in the day of his wrath and of the whirlwind and 
storm. 

These days, these days of trial, are the days that do 
most aptly give an occasion to Christians to take the ex- 
actest measures and scantlings of ourselves. We are apt 
t© overshoot in days that are calm, and to think ourselves 
far higher and more strong than we find we are when the 



PERSECUTION. 247 

trying day is upon us. The mouth of Gaal, Judges 9 : 38, 
and the boasts of Peter, were great and high before the 
trial came ; but when that came, they found themselves 
to fall far short of the courage they thought they had. We 
also, before the temptation comes, think we can walk upon 
the sea ; but when the winds blow, we feel ourselves begin 
to sink. Hence such a time is rightly said to be a time to 
try us, or to find out what we are; and is there no good 
in this ? Is it not this that rightly rectifies our judgment 
about ourselves, that makes us to know ourselves, that 
tends to cut off those superfluous sprigs of pride and self- 
conceitedness, wherewith we are subject to be overcome ? 
Is not such a day the day that bends us, humbles us, and 
that makes us bow before God for our faults committed in 
our prosperity ? And yet doth it yield no good unto us ? We 
could not live without such turnings of the hand of God 
upon us. 



Thine own doubts and mistrusts about what God will 
do and about whither thou shalt go, when thou for him 
hast suffered awhile he can resolve, yea, dissolve, crush, 
and bring to nothing. He can make fear flee far away, 
and place heavenly confidence in its room. He can bring 
invisible and eternal things to the eye of thy soul, and 
make thee see that, in those things in which thine enemies 
shall see nothing, that thou shalt count worth the loss of 
ten thousand lives to enjoy. He can pull such things out 
of his bosom, and can put such things into thy mouth ; 
yea, can make thee choose to be gone, though through the 
flames, rather than to stay here and die in silken sheets. 
Yea, he can himself come near, and bring his heaven and 
glory to thee. The Spirit of glory and of God resteth 
upon them that are but reproached for the name of Christ. 
And what the Spirit of glory is, and what is his resting 
upon his sufferers, is quite beyond the knowledge of the 
world, is but little felt by saints at peace. They that are 



248 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

engaged, that are under the lash for Christ— r they, I say, 
have it, and understand something of it. 



Look not upon the sufferings of God's people for their 
religion, to be tokens of God's great anger. It is, to be 
sure, as our heavenly Father orders it, rather a token of 
his love ; for suffering for the gospel and for the sincere 
profession of it, is indeed a dignity put upon us, a dignity 
that all men are not counted worthy of. Count it there- 
fore a favor that God has bestowed upon thee his truth, 
and grace to enable thee to profess it, though thou be 
made to suffer for it. 

Let God's people think never the worse of religion be- 
cause of the coarse entertainment it meeteth with in the 
world. It is better to choose God and affliction, than the 
world, and sin, and carnal peace. 

It is necessary that we should suffer, because we have 
sinned ; and if God will have us suffer a little while here 
for his word, instead of suffering for our sins in hell, let us 
be content, and count it a mercy with thankfulness. 

The wicked are reserved to the day of destruction, they 
shall be brought forth to the day of wrath. How kindly, 
therefore, doth God deal with us, when he chooses to afflict 
us but for a little, that with everlasting kindness he may 
have mercy upon us. 



Since the rod is God's as well as the child, let us not 
look upon our troubles as if they came from and were man- 
aged only by hell. It is true, a persecutor has a black 
mark upon him ; but yet the Scriptures say that all the 
ways of the persecutor are God's. Wherefore as we should, 
so again we should not, be afraid of men : we should be 
afraid of them, because they will hurt us ; but we should 
not be afraid of them as if they were let loose to do to us 
and with us what they will. God's bridle is upon them, 
God's hook is in their nose ; yea, and God hath determined 



PERSECUTION. 249 

the bounds of their rage ; and if he lets them drive his 
church into the sea of troubles, it shall be but up to the 
neck ; and so far it may go and not be drowned. Isaiah 

8 : 7, 8, 



" May we not fly in a time of persecution ? Your press- 
ing upon us that persecution is ordered and managed by 
God, makes us afraid to fly." 

Thou may est do in this even as it is in thy heart. If 
it is in thy heart to fly, fly ; if it be in thy heart to stand, 
stand. Any thing but a denial of the truth. He that flies, 
has warrant to do so ; he that stands, has warrant to do so. 
Yea, the same man may both fly and stand, as the call and 
working of God with his heart may be. Moses fled, Moses 
stood ; Jeremiah fled, Jeremiah stood ; Christ withdrew 
himself, Christ stood; Paul fled, Paul stood. 

But in flying, fly not from religion ; fly not, for the sake 
of a trade ; fly not, that thou mayest have care for the 
flesh : this is wicked, and will yield neither peace nor profit 
to thy soul, neither now, nor at death, nor at the day of 
judgment. 

The hotter the rage and fury of men are against right- 
eous w T ays, the more those that love righteousness grow 
therein. For they are concerned for it, not to hide it, but 
to make it spangle ; not to extinguish it, but to greaten it, 
and to show the excellency of it in all its features and in 
all its comely proportion. Now such an one will make 
straight steps for his feet, lest that which is lame be turned 
out of the way. Heb. 12:13. 

Now he shows to all men what faith is, by charity, by 
self-denial, by meekness, by gentleness, by long-sufFering, 
by patience, by love to enemies, and by doing good to them 
that hate us. Now he walketh upon his high places, yea, 
will not now admit that so slovenly a conversation should 
come within his doors, as did use to haunt his house in 

11* 



250 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

former times. Now it is Christ-mas, now it is suffering- 
time, now we must keep holy day every day. 

The reason is, that a man when he sufTereth for Christ, 
is set upon a hill, upon a stage, as in a theatre, to play a 
part for God in the world. And you know, when men are 
to play their parts upon a stage, they count themselves if 
possible more bound to circumspection ; and that for the 
credit of their master, the credit of their art, and the credit 
of themselves. For then the eyes of every body are fixed, 
they gape and stare upon them, Psalm 22 : 17, and a trip 
here is as bad as a fall in another place. Also now God 
himself looks on. Yea, he smileth, as being pleased to see 
a good behavior attending the trial of the innocent. 



There are some of the graces of God that are in thee, 
that as to some of their acts cannot show themselves, nor 
their excellency, nor their power, nor what they can do, but 
as thou art in a suffering state. Faith and patience in 
persecution have that to do, that to show, and that to per- 
form, that cannot be done, shown, nor performed, anywhere 
else but there. There is also a patience of hope, a rejoicing 
in hope when we are in tribulation, that is over and above 
that which we have when we are at ease and quiet. That 
also that all graces can endure and triumph over, shall not 
be known, but when and as we are in a state of affliction. 
Now these acts of our graces are of such worth and esteem 
with God, and he so much delighteth in them, that occa- 
sion, through his righteous judgment, must be ministered 
for them to show their beauty and what bravery there is 
in them. 

It is also to be considered that those acts of our graces 
that cannot be put forth or show themselves in their splen- 
dor but when we christianly suffer, will yield such fruit 
to those whose trials call them into exercise, as will in the 
day of God abound to their comfort and tend to their per- 
fection in glory. 1 Peter, 1 : 7 ; 2 Cor. 4 : 17. 



BUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. 251 

Why then should we think that our innocent lives will 
exempt us from sufferings, or that troubles shall do us 
harm ? 

Alas, we have need of those bitter pills at which we 
so much wince. I see that I still have need of these trials ; 
and if God will by these judge me, as he judges his saints, 
that I may not be condemned with the world, I will cry, 
Grace, grace, for ever. 

Shall we deserve correction, and be angry because we 
have it ? Or shall it come to save us, and shall we be 
offended with the hand that brings it ? Our sickness is so 
great that our enemies take notice of it ; let them know 
too that we take our purges patiently. 

We are willing to pay for those potions that are given 
us for the health of our body, how sick soever they make us ; 
and if God will have us pay too for that which is to better 
our souls, why should we grudge thereat ? Those that 
bring us these medicines have little enough for their pains ; 
for my part, I profess I would not for a great deal be bound, 
for their wages, to do their work. True, physicians are for 
the most part chargeable, and niggards are too loath to part 
with their money to them ; but when necessity says they 
must either take physic or die, of two evils they desire to 
choose the least. Why, affliction is better than sin ; and 
if God sends the one to cleanse us from the other, let us 
thank him, and be also content to pay the messenger. 



BUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. 

FROM BUNYAN'S EXAMINATION BEFORE JUSTICES KEELING, CHESTER,^ ETC. 

Keeling. Justice Keeling said that I ought not to 
preach, and asked me where I had my authority ; with 
many other such like words. 

* On the restoration of the house of Stuart, Charles II. entered 
London, in May, 1660. In November of that year, Bunyan was in- 
dicted for an upholder of unlawful assemblies and conventicles, and 
for not conforming to the church of England. a He was sentenced," 



252 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Bunyan. I said that I would prove that it was lawful 
for me, and such as I am, to preach .the word of God. 

Keeling, He said unto me, By what scripture ? 

Bunyan. I said, by that in the first epistle of Peter, 
fourth chapter and eleventh verse, and Acts eighteenth, 
with other scriptures ; which he would not suffer me to 
mention* but said, Hold, not so many : which is the first ? 

Bunyan. I said, This : "As every man hath received 
the gift, even so let him minister the same unto another, 
as good stewards of the grace of God. If any man speak, 
let him speak as the oracles of God." 

Keeling. He said, Let me a little open that scripture 
to you. As every man hath received the gift ; that is, said 
he, as every man hath received a trade, so let him follow 

says Crosby, " to perpetual banishment, in pursuance of an act made 
by the then parliament." This sentence was never executed, but he 
was kept in prison for more than twelve years. 

Subsequently to this year, 1660, several oppressive acts were passed, 
as the Corporation act, 1661, the act of Uniformity, 1662, the Five- 
mile act, 1665, the Conventicle acts, 1666 and 1671, and the Test act, 
1673. The act of Uniformity required that every clergyman should be 
reordained ; should declare his assent to every thing contained in the 
Book of Common Prayer, etc. By this act, about two thousand dis- 
senting ministers were ejected from their livings, and the most cruel 
persecution followed. The Five-mile and Conventicle acts imposed 
various fines, imprisonment, and death upon all persons above sixteen 
years of age, who attended divine service where the liturgy was not 
read ; ordained that no non-conformist minister should live within five 
miles of any town ; and aimed to suppress all meetings for worship 
among the non-conformists. These in a short time made frightful des- 
olations, and all the j ails in the kingdom soon became filled with men 
who were the brightest ornaments of Christianity. The persecuted in- 
cluded both sexes and all ages, from the child of nine or ten years, to 
the hoary-headed saint of eighty. In Picart's Religious Ceremonies, 
it is stated that the number of dissenters of all sects, who perished in 
prison under Charles II., was eight thousand. On the accession of 
William III., these penalties and disabilities were removed by the Toler- 
ation act. The Corporation and Test acts, however, disgraced the stat- 
ute-book of England till the year 1828, when they were triumphantly 
repealed. Offor's Introduction, Hume's History, and Ency. Amor. 



BUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. 253 

it. If any man hath received a gift of tinkering, as thou 
hast done, let him follow his tinkering ; and so other men 
their trades, and the divine his calling, etc. 

Bunyan. Nay, sir, said I, but it is most clear that the 
apostle speaks here of preaching the word : if you do but 
compare both the verses together, the next verse explains 
this gift what it is; saying, "If any man speak, let him 
speak as the oracles of God;" so that it is plain that the 
Holy Ghost doth not so much in this place exhort to civil 
callings, as to the exercising of those gifts that we have 
received from God. I would have gone on, but he would 
not give me leave. 

Keeling. He said we might do it in our families, but 
not otherwise. 

Bunyan. I said, if it was lawful to do good to some, it 
was lawful to do good to more. If it was a good duty to 
exhort our families, it is good to exhort others ; but if they 
held it a sin to meet together to seek the face of God, and 
exhort one another to follow Christ, I should sin still ; for 
so we should do. 

Keeling. He said he was not so well versed in scrip- 
ture as to dispute, or words to that purpose. And said, 
moreover, that they could not wait upon me any longer ; 
but said to me, Then you confess the indictment ; do you 
not ? Now, and not till now, I saw I was indicted. 

Bunyan. I said, This I confess : we have had many 
meetings together both to pray to God and to exhort one 
another, and we have had the sweet comforting presence 
of the Lord among us for encouragement ; blessed be his 
name therefor. I confessed myself guilty no otherwise. 

Keeling. Then said he, Hear your judgment. You must 
be had back again to prison, and there lie for three months 
following ; and at three months' end, if you do not submit 
to go to church to hear divine service, and leave your 
preaching, you must be banished the realm : and if, after 
such a day as shall be appointed you to be gone, you shall 



254 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

be found in this realm, or be found to come over again 
without special license from the king, you must stretch by 
the neck for it ; I tell you plainly. And so he bid my jailer 
have me away. 

Bunyan. I told him, as to this matter I was at a point 
with him ; for if I was out of prison to-day, I would preach 
the gospel again to-morrow, by the help of God. 



I continued in prison till the next assizes, which are 
called midsummer assizes, being then kept in August, 1661. 

Now at that assizes, because I would not leave any 
possible means unattempted that might be lawful, I did, 
by my wife,^ present a petition to the judges three times, 
that I might be heard, and that they would impartially 
take my case into consideration. 

The first time my wife went, she presented it to Judge 
Hale, who very mildly received it at her hand, telling her 
that he would do her and me the best good he could ; but 
he feared, he said, he could do none. The next day again, 
lest they should through the multitude of business forget 
me, we did throw another petition into the coach to Judge 
Twisdon, who, when he had seen it, snapt her up, and 
angrily told her I was a convicted person, and could not 
be released unless I would promise to preach no more, etc. 

Well, after this, she again presented another to Judge 
Hale, as he sat on the bench, who, as it seemed, was will- 
ing to give her audience ; only Justice Chester being pres- 

* " This courageous woman [his second wife] and lord chief-justice 
Hale and Bunyan have long since met in heaven; but how little 
could they recognize each other's character on earth ! How little 
could the distressed, insulted wife have imagined, that beneath' the 
judge's ermine there was beating the heart of a child of God, a man 
of humility, integrity, and prayer ! How little could the great, learn- 
ed, illustrious, and truly pious judge have dreamed that the man, the 
obscure tinker whom he was suffering to languish in prison for want 
of a writ of error, would one day be the subject of greater admiration 
and praise than all the judges in the kingdom of Great Britain." 
Dr. Chcevcr's Lectures on Pilgrim's Progress, p. 158. 



BUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. 255 

ent, stept up and said that I was convicted in the court, 
and that I was a hot-spirited fellow, or words to that pur- 
pose ; whereat he waived it, and did not meddle with it. 
But yet, my wife being encouraged by the high-sheriff, did 
venture once more into their presence, as the poor widow 
did to the unjust judge, to try what she could do with 
them for my liberty before they went forth of the town. 
The place where she went to them was to the Swan 
Chamber, where the two judges and many justices and 
gentry of the country were in company together. She then, 
coming into the chamber with abashed face and a trem- 
bling heart, began her errand to them in this manner. 

Woman. My lord — directing herself to Judge Hale — I 
make bold to come once again to your lordship to know 
what may be done with my husband. 

Judge Hale. To whom he said, Woman, I told thee 
before I could do thee no good, because they have taken 
that for a conviction which thy husband spoke at the ses- 
sions ; and unless there be something done to undo that, I 
can do thee no good. 

Woman. My lord, said she, he is kept unlawfully in 
prison; they clapped him up before there was any procla- 
mation against the meetings ; the indictment also is false ; 
besides, they never asked him whether he was guilty or 
no; neither did he confess the indictment. 

One of the Justices. Then one of the Justices that 
stood by, whom she knew not, said, My lord, he was law- 
fully convicted. 

Woman. It is false, said she ; for when they said to 
him, Do you confess the indictment ? he said only this, that 
he had been at several meetings, both where there was 
preaching the word and prayer, and that they had God's 
presence among them. 

Judge Twisdon. Whereat Judge Twisdon answered 
very angrily, saying, What, you think we can do as we 
list ! Your husband is a breaker of the peace, and is con- 



256 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

victed by the law, etc. Whereupon Judge Hale called for 
the statute-book. 

Woman. But, said she, my lord, he was not lawfully 
convicted. 

Chester. Then Justice Chester said, My lord, he was 
lawfully convicted. 

Woman. It is false, said she ; it was but a word of dis- 
course that they took for conviction. 

Chester. But it is recorded, woman, it is recorded, said 
Justice Chester ; as if it must of necessity be true, because 
it was recorded. With which words he often endeavored 
to stop her mouth, having no other argument to convince 
her but, It is recorded, it is recorded. 

Woman. My lord, said she, I was a while since at Lon« 
don, to see if I could get my husband's liberty ; and there I 
spoke with my Lord Burkwood, one of the House of Lords, 
to whom I delivered a petition, who took it of me and pre- 
sented it to some of the rest of the House of Lords for my 
husband's releasement; who, when they had seen it, said 
that they could not release him, but had committed his 
releasement to the judges at the next assizes. This he 
told me ; and now I come to you to see if any thing can 
be done in this business, and you give neither releasement 
nor relief. To which they gave her no answer, but made 
as if they heard her not. 

Chester. Only Justice Chester was often up with this, 
He is convicted, and it is recorded. 

Woman. If it be, it is false, said she. 

Chester. My lord, said Justice Chester, he is a pesti- 
lent fellow ; there is not such a fellow in the country 
again. 

Twisdon. What, will your husband leave preaching ? 
If he will do so, then send for him. 

Woman. My lord, said she, he dares not leave preaching 
as long as he can speak. 

Twisdon. See here : what should we talk any more 



BUNYAN'S TRIAL AND IMPRISONMENT. 257 

about such a fellow? Must he do what he lists ? He is a 
breaker of the peace. 

Woman. She told him again, that he desired to live 
peaceably and to follow his calling, that his family might 
be maintained; and moreover said, My lord, I have four 
small children that cannot help themselves, of which one 
is blind ; and we have nothing to live upon but the charity 
of good people. 

Hale. Whereat Justice Hale, looking very soberly on 
the matter, said, Alas, poor woman ! 

Twisdon. But Judge Twisdon told her that she made 
poverty her cloak ; and said, moreover, that he understood 
I was maintained better by running up and down a preach- 
ing, than by following my calling. 

Hale. What is his calling? said Judge Hale. 

Answer. Then some of the company that stood by said, 
A tinker, my lord. 

Woman. Yes, said she, and because he is a tinker and a 
poor man, therefore he is despised and cannot have justice. 

Hale. Then Judge Hale answered, very mildly, say- 
ing, I tell thee, woman, seeing it is so that they have taken 
what thy husband spake for a conviction, thou must apply 
thyself to the king, or sue out his pardon, or get out a writ 
of error. 

Chester. But when Justice Chester heard him give her 
this counsel, and especially, as she supposed, because he 
spoke of a writ of error, he chafed and seemed to be very 
much offended, saying, My lord, he will preach and do 
what he lists. 

Woman. He preacheth nothing but the word of God 3 
said she. 

Twisdon. He preach the word of God ! said Twisdon — 
and withal she thought he would have struck her — he run- 
neth up and down and doeth harm. 

Woman. No, my lord, said she, it is not so ; God hath 
owned him, and done much good by him. 



258 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Twisdon. God ! said lie; his doctrine is the doctrine of 
the devil. 

Woman. My lord, said she, when the righteous Judge 
shall appear, it will be known that his doctrine is not the 
doctrine of the devil. 

Twisdon. My lord, said he to Judge Hale, do not mind 
her, but send her away. 

Hale. Then said Judge Hale, I am sorry, woman, that 
I can do thee no good : thou must do one of those three 
things aforesaid, namely, either to apply thyself to the king, 
or sue out his pardon, or get a writ of error ; but a writ of 
error will be cheapest. 

Woman. At which Chester again seemed to be in a 
chafe, and put off his hat, and as she thought scratched his 
head for anger ; but when I saw, said she, that there was 
no prevailing to have my husband sent for, though I often 
desired them that they would send for him, that he might 
speak for himself, telling them that he could give them 
better satisfaction than I could in what they demanded of 
him, with several other things which now I forget : only 
this I remember, that though I was somewhat timorous at 
my first entrance into the chamber, yet before I went out 
I could not but break forth into tears, not so much because 
they were so hard-hearted against me and my husband, but 
to think what a sad account such poor creatures will have 
to give at the coming of the Lord, when they shall there 
answer for all things whatsoever they have done in the 
body, whether it be good or whether it be bad. So when 
I departed from them, the book of statutes was brought; 
but what they said of it I know nothing at all, neither did 
I hear any more from them. 



MARTYRS. 
In the house of the forest of Lebanon you find pillars, 
pillars ; so in the church in the wilderness. Oh the mighty 
ones of which the church was compacted ; they were all 



CHRISTIAN COURAG-E. 259 

pillars, strong, bearing up the house against wind and 
weather ; nothing but fire and sword could dissolve them. 
As therefore this house was made up of great timber, so 
this church in the wilderness was made up of giants in 
grace. These men had the faces of lions ; no prince, no 
king, no threat, no terror, no torment could make them 
yield. They loved not their lives unto the death. They 
have laughed their enemies in the face, they have triumph- 
ed in the flames. None ever showed higher saints than 
Were they in the church in the wilderness. Others talked, 
these have suffered ; others have said, these have done ; 
these have voluntarily taken their lives in their hands, 
for they loved them not to the death, and have fairly and 
in cool blood laid them down before the world, God, angels, 
and men, for the confirming of the truth which they have 
professed. 



That which makes a martyr, is suffering for the word 
of God after a right manner. And that is when he sufTer- 
eth not only for righteousness, but for righteousness' sake ; 
not only for truth, but of love to truth ; not only for God's 
word, but according to it, to wit, in that holy, humble, 
meek manner that the word of God requireth. A man may 
give his body to be burned for God's truth, and yet be none 
of God's martyrs. 1 Cor. 13:1-3. 



CHRISTIAN COURAGE. 
When we see our brethren before us fall to the earth by 
death, through the violence of the enemies of God, for their 
holy and Christian profession, we should covet to make 
good their ground against them, though our turn should be 
next. We should valiantly do in this matter as is the cus- 
tom of soldiers in war ; take great care that the ground be 
maintained, and the front kept full and complete. 



There are but few when they come to the cross, cry, 



260 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Welcome, cross ! as some of the martyrs did to the stake 
they were burned at. Therefore, if you meet with the 
cross in thy journey, in what manner soever it be, be not 
daunted and say, Alas, what shall I do now ? but rather 
take courage, knowing that by the, cross is the way to the 
kingdom. Can a man believe in Christ, and not be hated 
by the devil ? Can he make a profession of Christ, and 
that sweetly and convincingly, and the children of Satan 
hold their tongue ? Can darkness agree with light ? 



THE CHRISTIAN "WARFARE. 

Departing from iniquity is not a work of an hour, or a 
day, or a week, or a month, or a year ; but it is a work 
that will last thee thy lifetime, and there is the greatness 
and difficulty of it. "Were it to be done presently, or were 
the work to be quickly over, how many are there that 
would be found to have departed from iniquity ; but for 
that it is a work of continuance, and not worth any thing 
unless men hold out to the end ; therefore it is that so few 
are found actors or overcomers therein. Departing from 
iniquity, with many, is but like the falling out of two 
neighbors ; they hate one another for a while, and then re* 
new their old friendship again. 

But again, since to depart from iniquity is a work of 
time, of all thy time, no wonder if it dogs thee, and offer- 
eth to return upon thee again and again; for sin is mis- 
chievous, and seeks nothing less than thy ruin. Where- 
fore, thou must in the first place take it for granted that 
thus it will be, and so cry the harder to God for the contin- 
uing of his presence and grace upon thee in this blessed 
work, that as thou hast begun to depart from iniquity, so 
thou mayest have strength to do it to the last gasp of thy 
life. 

And further, for that departing from iniquity is a kind 
of warfare with it — for iniquity will hang in thy flesh what 
it can, and will not be easily kept under — therefore no mar- 



CHRISTIAN WARFARE. 261 

vel if thou find it wearisome work, and that the thing that 
thou wouldst get rid of is so unwilling to let thee depart 
from it. 

And since the work is so weighty, and makes thee to 
go groaning on, I will for thy help give thee here a few 
things to consider of: And, 

1. Remember that God sees thee, and has his eyes open 
upon thee, even then when sin and temptation are flying 
at thee to give them some entertainment. This was the 
thought that made Joseph depart from sin, when solicit- 
ed to embrace it by a very powerful argument. Genesis 
39:6, 7. 

2. Remember that God's wrath burns against it, and 
that he will surely be revenged on it, and on all that give 
it entertainment. This made Job afraid to countenance it, 
and put him upon departing from it : " For destruction 
from God was a terror to me, and by reason of his highness 
I could not endure." Job 31 : 23. 

3. Remember the mischiefs that it has done to those 
that have embraced it, and what distress it has brought 
upon others. This made the whole congregation of Israel 
tremble to think that any of their brethren should give 
countenance to it. Joshua 22 : 16— IS. 

4. Remember what Christ hath suffered by it, that he 
might deliver us from the power of it. This made Paul 
so heartily depart from it, and wish all Christians to do so 
as well as he. 2 Cor. 5 : 14. 

5. Remember that those that are now in hell-fire went 
thither for that they loved iniquity, and would not depart 
from it. Psalm 9 : 17 ; 11 : 6. 

6. Remember that a profession is not worth a pin, if 
they that make it do not depart from iniquity. James 
2:16, 17. 

7. Remember that thy death-bed \fill be very uneasy 
to thee, if thy conscience at that day shall be clogged with 
the guilt of thy iniquity. Hos. 7 : 13, 14. 



262 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

8. Remember that at the judgment-aay Christ will 
say, Depart from me, to those that have not here de- 
parted from their sin and iniquity. Luke 13 : 27 ; Matt. 
25:41. 

Lastly, Remember well, and think much upon what a 
blessed reward the Son of God will give to them at that 
day, that have joined to their profession of faith in him a 
holy and blessed conversation. 



He that will depart from iniquity must be well forti- 
fied with faith and patience and the love of God ; for in- 
iquity has its beauty-spots and its advantages attending on 
it ; hence it is compared to a woman, Zech. 5:7, for it al- 
lureth greatly. Therefore I say, he that will depart there- 
from had need have faith ; that being it which will help 
him to see beyond it, and that will show him more in things 
that are invisible, than can be found in sin, were it ten 
thousand times more entangling than it is. 2 Cor. 4 : 18. 
He has need of patience also to hold out in this work of 
departing from iniquity. For indeed, to depart from that 
is to draw my mind off from that which will follow me 
with continual solicitations. Samson withstood his Delilah 
for a while, but she got the mastery of him at the last. 
Why so ? because he wanted patience ; he grew angry and 
was vexed, and could withstand her solicitations no longer. 
Judges 16 : 15-17. Many there be, also, that can well 
enough be contented to shut sin out of doors for a while ; 
but because sin has much fair speech, therefore it overcomes 
at last. Prov. 7:21. For sin and iniquity will not be 
easily said nay. Wherefore, departing from iniquity is a 
work of length, as long as life shall last. A work, did I 
say ? It is a war, a continual combat ; wherefore, he that 
will adventure to set upon this work, must needs be armed 
with faith and patience, a daily exercise he will find him- 
self put to by the continual attempts of iniquity to be put- 
ting forth itself Matt. 24 : 13 ; Rev. 3:10. 



THE CHRISTIAN ARMOR. 263 

THE CHRISTIAN ARMOR. 

The war that the church makes with antichrist is rather 
defensive than offensive. A Christian also, if he can but 
defend his soul in the sincere profession of the true religion, 
doth what by duty, as to this, he is bound. Wherefore, 
though the New Testament admits him to put on the whole 
armor of God, yet the whole and every part thereof is spir- 
itual, and only defensive. True, there is mention made of 
the sword, but that sword is the word of God — a weapon 
that hurteth none, none at all but the devil and sin, and 
those that love it. Indeed, it was made for Christians to 
defend themselves and their religion with, against hell and 
the angels of darkness. 

Objection. But he that shall use none other than this, 
must look to come off a loser. 

Answer. In the judgment of the world this is true, but 
not in the judgment of them that have skill and a heart to 
use it. For this armor is not Saul's which David refused, 
but God's ; by which the lives of all those have been se- 
cured, that put it on and handled it well. You read of 
some of David's mighty men of valor, that their faces were 
as the faces of lions, and that they were as swift of foot as 
the roes upon the mountains. Why, God's armor makes a 
man's face look thus ; also it makes him that useth it more 
lively and active than before. God's armor is no burden 
to the body, nor clog to the mind, but rather a natural, 
instead of an artificial fortification. 

But this armor comes not to any, but out of the King's 
hand. Christ distributeth his armor to his church. Hence 
it is said, " It is given to us to suffer for him." It is given 
to us by himself, and on his behalf. 



I saw also, that the Interpreter took him again by the 
hand and led him into a pleasant place, where was build- 
ed a stately palace beautiful to behold; at the sight of 
which Christian v/as greatly delighted : he saw also upon 



264 RICHES OF BUNYAtf. 

the top thereof certain persons walking, who were clothed 
all in gold. 

Then said Christian, " May we go in thither ?" 
Then the Interpreter took him, and led him up towards 
the door of the palace ; and behold, at the door stood a 
great company of men, as desirous to go in, but durst not. 
There also sat a man at a little distance from the door, at 
a table-side, with a book and his ink-horn before him, to 
take the name of him that should enter therein : he saw 
also, that in the doorway stood many men in armor to keep 
it, being resolved to do to the men that would enter what 
hurt and mischief they could. 

Now was Christian somewhat in a maze ; at last, when 
every man started back for fear of the armed men, Chris- 
tian saw a man of a very stout countenance come up to the 
man that sat there to write, saying, " Set down my name, 
sir ;" the which when he had done, he saw the man draw 
his sword, and put a helmet upon his head, and rush tow- 
ards the door upon the armed men, who laid upon him 
with deadly force ; but the man was not at all discouraged, 
but fell to cutting and hacking most fiercely. So after he 
had received and given many wounds to those that attempt- 
ed to keep him out, he cut his way through them all, and 
pressed forward into the palace ; at which there was a 
pleasant voice heard from those that were within, even of 
those that walked upon the top of the palace, saying, 

" Come in, come in ; 
Eternal glory thou shalt win.'' 

So he went in, and was clothed with such garments as they. 
Then Christian smiled and said, " I think verily I know the 
meaning of this." 



In the description of the Christian armor, we have no 
provision for the back. 



TEMPTATIONS OF SATAN. 265 



XV. TEMPTATIONS. 

TEMPTATIONS OF SATAN. 

Satan, even from himself, besides the working of our 
own lust, doth do us wonderful injury, and hits our souls 
with many a fiery dart, that we think comes either from 
ourselves or from heaven and God himself. 



Satan diligently waiteth to come in at the door, if 
Careless has left it a little ajar. 



There is nothing that Satan more desires than to get 
good men in his sieve to sift them as wheat, that if possi- 
ble he may leave them nothing but bran ; no grace, but 
the very husk and shell of religion. 



So long as we retain the simplicity of the word, we 
have Satan at the end of the staff; for unless we give way 
to a doubt about that, about the truth and simplicity of it, 
he gets no ground upon us. In time of temptation, it is 
our wisdom and duty to keep close to the word that pro- 
hibits and forbids the sin ; and not to reason with Satan, 
of how far our outward and worldly privileges go, especially 
of those privileges that border upon the temptation, as Eve 
here did : " We may eat of all but one." By this she goeth 
to the outside of her liberty, and sees herself upon the 
brink of the danger. Christ might have told the tempter, 
when he assaulted him, that he could have made stones 
bread, and that he could have descended from the pinnacle 
of the temple, as afterwards he did ; but that would have 
admitted of other questions ; wherefore he chooseth to lay 
aside such needless and unwarrantable reasonings, and 
resisteth him with a direct word of God, most pertinent to 
quash the tempter and also to preserve himself in the way. 

Riches of Buuyan. 12 



266 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

To go to the outside of privileges, especially when tempted 
of the devil j is often if not always very dangerous and 
hazardous. 



As long as the devil is alive there is danger ; and 
though a strong Christian may be too hard for, and may 
overcome him in one thing, he may be too hard for, yea, 
and may overcome the Christian two for one afterwards. 
Thus he served David, and thus he served Peter, and thus 
he in our day has served many more. The strongest are 
weak, the wisest are fools, when suffered to be sifted as 
wheat in Satan's sieve ; yea, and have often been so 
proved, to the wounding of their great hearts and the dis- 
honor of religion. 



It is usual with the devil in his temptings of poor 
creatures, to put a good and bad together, that by show of 
the good the tempted might be drawn to do that which in 
truth is evil. Thus he served Saul ; he spared the best of 
the herd and flock, under pretence of sacrificing to God, and 
so transgressed the plain command. But this the apostle 
said was dangerous, and therefore censureth such as in a 
state of condemnation. Thus he served Adam; he put 
the desirableness of sight and a plain transgression of 
God's law together, that by the loveliness of the one they 
might the easier be brought to do the other. 0, poor Eve, 
do we wonder at thy folly ? Doubtless we had done as bad 
with half the argument of thy temptation. 



Satan by tempting one may chiefly intend the destruc- 
tion of another. By tempting the wife, he may aim at the 
destruction of the husband ; by tempting the father, he may 
design the destruction of his children ; and by tempting the 
king, he may design the ruin of his subjects, even as in the 
case of David: "Satan stood up against Israel, and pro- 
voked Dnvid to number the people." He hod a mind in 



TEMPTATIONS OF THE WORLD. 267 

destroy seventy thousand, therefore he tempted David 
to sin. 



I have sent you here enclosed a drop of that honey that 
I have taken out of the carcass of a lion. I have eaten 
thereof myself, and am much refreshed thereby. Tempta- 
tions, when we meet them at first, are as the lion that 
roared upon Samson ; but if we overcome them, the next 
time we see them we shall find a nest of honey within 
them. 



TEMPTATIONS OF THE WORLD. 
If thou wouldst be faithful to do that work that God 
hath appointed thee to do in this world for his name, then 
labor always to possess thy heart with a right understand- 
ing, both of the things that this world yieldeth, and of the 
things that shall be hereafter. I am confident that most 
if not all the miscarriages of the saints and people of God 
have their rise from deceivable thoughts here. The things 
of this world appear to us more, and those that are to come 
less, than they are ; and hence it is that many are so hot 
and eager for things that be in the world, and so cold and 
heartless for those that be in heaven. Satan is here a 
mighty artist, and can show us all earthly things in a mul- 
tiplying-glass ; but when we look up to things above, we 
see them as through sackcloth of hair. But take thou 
heed ; be not ruled by thy sensual appetite that can only 
savor fleshly things, neither be thou ruled by carnal reason 
which always darkeneth the things of heaven ; but go to 
the word, and as that says, so judge thou. That tells thee 
all things under the sun are vanity, nay, worse, vexation 
of spirit ; that tells thee the world is not, even when it 
doth most appear to be : wilt thou set thine heart upon 
that which is not ? for riches certainly make themselves 
wings, and fly away as an eagle towards heaven. The 
same may be said for honors, pleasures, and the like ; they 
are poor, low, base things to be entertained by a Chris- 



268 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

tian's heart. The man that hath most of them may in 
the fulness of his sufficiency be in straits ; yea, when he 
is about to fill his belly with them, God may cast the fury 
of his wrath upon him ; so is every one that layeth up 
treasure for himself on earth, and is not rich towards God. 
A horse that is laden with gold and pearls all day, may 
have a foul stable and a galled back at night. And " woe 
to him that increaseth that which is not his, and that 
ladeth himself with thick clay." man of God, throw 
this bone to the dogs ; suck not at it, there is no marrow 
there. " Set thy affections on things that are above, where 
Christ sitteth on the right hand of God." Colos. 3 : 1-4. 



ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR THE TEMPTED. 
Let us cast ourselves upon this love of Christ. No 
greater encouragement can be given us, than what is in 
the text, Eph. 3 : 18, 19, and about it. It is great ; it is 
li love that passeth knowledge." Men that are sensible of 
danger, are glad when they hear of such helps upon which 
they may boldly venture for escape. Why, such a help and 
relief the text helpeth trembling and fearful consciences 
to. Fear and trembling as to misery hereafter, can flow 
but from what we know, feel, or imagine ; but the text 
speaks of a love that passeth knowledge, consequently of 
a love that goes beyond all these. Besides, the apostle's 
conclusion upon this subject plainly makes it manifest, 
that this meaning which I have put upon the text is the 
mind of the Holy Ghost. Now " unto him," saith he, "that 
is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask 
or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto 
him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all 
ages, world without end. Amen." What can be more 
plain ? What can be more full ? What can be more 
suitable to the most despoftding spirit in any man ? He 
can do more than thou knowest he will. He can do 
more than thou thinkest he can. What dost thou think ? 



ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR THE TEMPTED. 269 

Why, I think, saith the sinner, that I am cast away. 
Well, but there are worse thoughts than these ; therefore 
think again. Why, saith the sinner, I think that my 
sins are as many as all the sins in the world. Indeed 
this is a very black thought, but there are worse thoughts 
than this ; therefore prithee think again. Why, I think, 
saith the sinner, that God is not able to pardon all my 
sins. Aye, now thou hast thought indeed ; for this thought 
makes thee look more like a devil than a man ; and yet, 
because thou art a man and not a devil, see the condescen- 
sion and boundlessness of the love of thy God. He is able 
to do above all that we think. Couldst thou, sinner, if. 
thou hadst been allowed, thyself express what thou wouldst 
have expressed — the greatness of the love thou wantest — 
with words that could have suited thee better ? For it is 
not said he can do above what we think, meaning our think- 
ing at present, but above all we can think ; meaning, above 
the worst and most soul- dejecting thoughts that we have 
at any time. Sometimes the dejected have worse thoughts 
than they have at other times. Well, take them at their 
worst times, at times when they think, and think, till they 
think themselves down into the very pangs of hell, yet this 
word of the grace of God is above them, and shows that 
he can yet recover and save these miserable people. 

And now I am upon this subject, I will a little further 
walk and travel with these desponding ones, and will put a 
few words in their mouths for their help against tempta- 
tions that may come upon them hereafter. For as Satan 
follows such now with charges and applications of guilt, 
so he may follow them with interrogatories and appeals ; 
for he can tell how by appeals, as well as by charging of 
sin, to sink and drown the sinner whose soul he has leave 
to engage. Suppose, therefore, that some distressed man or 
woman should after this way be engaged, and Satan should 
with his interrogatories and appeals be busy with them, to 
drive them to desperation ; the text last mentioned, Eph. 



270 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

3 : 18, 19, to say nothing of the subject of our discourse, 
yields plenty of help for the relief of such a one. Says 
Satan, Dost thou not know that thou hast horribly sinned ? 
Yes, says the soul, I do. Says Satan, Dost thou not know 
that thou art one of the vilest in all the pack of professors ? 
Yes, says the soul, I do. Says Satan, Doth not thy con- 
science tell thee that thou art and hast been more base 
than any of thy fellows can imagine thee to be ? Yes, 
says the soul, my conscience tells me so. Well, saith 
Satan, now will I come upon thee with my appeals. Art 
thou not a graceless wretch ? Yes. Hast thou a heart to 
.be sorry for this wickedness? No, not as I should. And 
albeit, saith Satan, thou prayest sometimes, yet is not thy 
heart possessed with a belief that God will not regard thee ? 
Yes, says the sinner. Why then, despair, and go hang thy- 
self, saith the devil. And now we are at the end of the 
thing designed and driven at by Satan. And what shall I 
now do, saith the sinner ? I answer, take up the words of 
the text against him: Christ loves with a love that " pass- 
eth knowledge." And answer him further, saying, Satan, 
though I cannot think that God loves me, though I cannot 
think that God will save me, yet I will not yield to thee : 
for God can do more than I think he can. And whereas 
thou appealedst unto me, if whether, when I pray, my 
heart is not possessed with the belief that God will not 
regard me, that shall not sink me neither ; for God can 
" do abundantly above what I ask or think." Thus this 
text helpeth where obstructions are put in against our be- 
lieving, and thereby casting ourselves upon the love of God 
in Christ for salvation. 

And yet this is not all ; for the text is yet more full : 
"He is able to do abundantly more, yea, exceeding abun- 
dantly more, or above all that we ask or think." It is a 
text made up of words picked and packed together by the 
wisdom of God ; picked and packed together on purpose 
for the succor and relief of the tempted ; that they may, 



ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR THE TEMPTED. 271 

when in the midst of their distresses, cast themselves upon 
the Lord their God. He can do abundantly more than we 
ask. 0, says the soul, that he would but do so much for 
me as I could ask him to do : how happy a man should I 
then be. Why, what wouldst thou ask for, sinner ? You 
may be sure, says the soul, I would ask to be saved from 
my sins. I would ask for faith in. and love to, Christ ; I 
would ask to be preserved in this evil world, and ask to be 
glorified with Christ in heaven. He that asketh for all 
this, doth indeed ask for much, and for more than Satan 
would have him believe that God is able or willing to 
bestow upon him. But mark : the text doth not say that 
God is able to do all that we can ask or think, but that he 
is able to do above all, yea, abundantly above all, yea, 
exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. 
What a text is this ! What a God have we ! God foresaw 
the sins of his people, and what work the devil would 
make with their hearts about them ; and therefore, to pre- 
vent their ruin by his temptation, he has thus largely, as 
you see, expressed his love by his word. Let us therefore, 
as he has bidden us, make this good use of this doctrine of 
grace, to cast ourselves upon this love of God in the times 
of distress and temptation. 



The bird in the air knows not the notes of the bird in 
the snare, until she comes thither herself. 

When I have been laden with sin, and pestered with 
several temptations, and in a very sad manner, then have 
I had the trial of the virtue of Christ's blood, with trial 
cf the virtue of other things ; and I have found that when 
tears would not do, prayers would not do, repentings and 
all other things could not reach my heart, then one 
touch, one drop, one shining of the virtue of the blood, of 
that blood that was let out with a spear, it hath in such a 
blessed manner delivered me, that it hath made me to 



272 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

marvel. 0, methinks it hath come with such life, such 
power, with such irresistible and marvellous glory, that it 
wipes off all the slurs, silences all the outcries, and quenches 
all the fiery darts and all the flames of -hell-fire, that are 
begotten by the charges of the law, Satan, and doubtful 
remembrances of my sinful life. 



There are three things that do usually afflict the soul 
that is earnestly looking after Jesus Christ. 

1. Dreadful accusations from Satan. 2. Grievous, de- 
filing, and infectious thoughts. 3. A strange readiness in 
our nature to fall in with both. By the first of these, the 
heart is made continually to tremble. Hence his tempta- 
tions are compared to the roaring of a lion. For as the 
lion by roaring killeth the heart of his prey, so doth Satan 
kill the spirit of those that hearken to him ; for when he 
tempteth, especially by way of accusation, he doth to us as 
Rabshakeh did to the Jews ; he speaks to us in our own 
language. He speaks our sin at every word ; our guilty 
conscience knows it. He speaks our death at every word ; 
our doubting conscience feels it. 

2. Besides this, there do now arise even in the heart 
such defiling and soul-infectious thoughts, as put the tempt- 
ed to his wit's end. For now it seems to the soul that the 
very flood-gates of the flesh are opened, and that to sin 
there is no stop at all ; now the air seems to be covered 
with darkness, and the man is as if he was changed into 
the nature of a devil. Now, if ignorance and unbelief pre- 
vail, he concludeth that he is a reprobate, made to be taken 
and destroyed. 

3. Now also he feeleth in him a readiness to fall in 
with every temptation — a readiness, I say, continually pres- 
ent. Romans 7 : 21. This throws all down. Now de- 
spair begins to swallow him up ; now he can neither pray, 
nor read, nor hear, nor meditate on God, but fire and smoke 
continually burst forth of the heart against him ; now sin 



ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR THE TEMPTED. 273 

and great confusion puts forth itself in all. Yea, and the 
more the sinner desireth to do a duty sincerely, the further 
off he always finds himself; for by how much the soul 
struggleth under these distresses, by so much the more doth 
Satan put forth himself to resist, still infusing more poison, 
that if possible it might never struggle more, for strugglings 
are also as poison to Satan. 

The fly in the spider's web is an emblem of the soul in 
such a condition : the fly is entangled in the web ; at this 
the spider shows himself ; if the fly stirs again, down comes 
the spider to her, and claps a foot upon her ; if yet the fly 
makes a noise, then with poisoned mouth the spider lays 
hold upon her ; if the fly struggles still, then he poisons 
her more and more : what shall the fly do now ? Why, she 
dies, if somebody does not quickly release her. This is the 
case of the tempted ; they are entangled in the web, their 
feet and wings are entangled; now Satan shows himself; 
if the soul now struggleth, Satan laboreth to hold it down ; 
if it now shall make a noise, then he bites with blasphemous 
mouth, more poisonous than the gall of a serpent. If it 
struggle again, then he poisoneth more and more ; inso- 
much that it must needs at last die in the net, if the man, 
the Lord Jesus, helps not out. The afflicted conscience 
understands my words. 

Further, though the fly in the web is altogether incapa- 
ble of looking for relief, yet this awakened, tempted Chris- 
tian, is not. What must he do, therefore ? How should 
he entertain hopes of life ? If he looks to his heart, there 
is blasphemy ; if he looks to his duties, there is sin ; if he 
strives to mourn and lament, perhaps he cannot ; unbelief 
and hardness hinder. Shall this man lie down and despair ? 
No. Shall he trust to his duties? No. Shall he stay from 
Christ till his heart is better ? fro. What then ? Let 
him now look to Jesus Christ crucified ; then shall he see 
his sins answered for, then shall he see death dying, then 
shall he see guilt borne by another, and then shall he see 

12* 



274 RICHES OF BUKYAN. 

the devil overcome. This sight destroys the power of the 
first temptation, purifies the heart, and inclines the mind to 
all good things. 



Didst thou never learn to outshoot the devil with his 
own bow, and to cut off his head with his own sword, as 
David served Goliath, who was a type of Satan ? 

Question. how should a poor soul do this ? This is 
rare indeed. 

Answer. "Why, truly thus : Doth Satan tell thee thou 
prayest hut faintly, and with very cold devotion ? answer 
him thus, and say, I am glad you told me, for this will 
make me trust the more to Christ's prayers, and the less to 
my own ; also I will endeavor henceforward to groan, to 
sigh, and to he so fervent in my crying at the throne of 
grace, that I will, if I can, make the heavens rattle again 
with the mighty groans thereof. And whereas thou sayest 
that I am so weak in believing, I am glad you remind me 
of it ; I hope it will henceforward stir me up to cry the 
more heartily to God for strong faith, make me the more 
restless till I have it. And seeing thou tellest me that I 
run so softly, and that I shall go near to miss of glory, this 
also shall be through grace to my advantage, and cause me 
to press the more earnestly towards the mark for the prize 
of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. And seeing 
thou dost tell me that my sins are wondrous great, hereby 
thou bringest the remembrance of the unsupportable ven- 
geance of God into my mind if I die out of Jesus Christ, 
and also the necessity of the blood, dea,th, and merits of 
Christ to help me ; I hope it will make me fly the faster 
and press the harder after an interest in him. And so all 
along, if he tell thee of thy deadness, dulness, coldness, or 
unbelief, or the greatness of thy sins, answer him and say, 
I am glad you told me ; I hope it will be a means to make 
me run faster, seek more earnestly, and be the more restless 
after Jesus Christ. If thou didst but get this art, so as to 



ENGOUItAG-EALENTS FOE. THE TEMPTED. 275 

outrun him in his own shoes, as I may say, and to make 
his own darts to pierce himself, then thou mightest also 
say, Now do Satan's temptations, as well as all other things, 
work together for my good. 

Objection. But I find so many weaknesses in every 
duty that I perform, as when I pray, when I read, when I 
hear or attempt any other duty, that it maketh me out of 
conceit with myself; it maketh me think that my duties 
are nothing worth. 

Answer. Thou "by this means art taken off from lean- 
ing on any thing "below Jesus for eternal life. It is likely, 
if thou wast not sensible of many by-thoughts and wicked- 
nesses in thy best performances, thou wouldst go near to be 
some proud, abominable hypocrite, or a silly, proud, dis- 
sembling wretch at the best ; such a one as wouldst send 
thy soul to the devil in a bundle of thy own righteousness. 



Would Jesus Christ have mercy offered, in the first 
place, to the biggest sinner ? Let the tempted harp upon 
this string for their help and consolation. The tempted, 
wherever he dwells, always thinks himself the biggest 
sinner, one most unworthy of eternal life. 

This is Satan's master- argument : Thou art a horrible 
sinner, a hypocrite, one that has a profane heart, and one 
that is an utter stranger to a work of grace. I say, this is 
his maul, his club, his masterpiece ; he does with this, as 
some do by their most enchanting songs, singing them every- 
where. I believe there are but few saints in the world that 
have not had this temptation sounding in their ears. But 
were they but aware, Satan by all this does but drive them 
to the gap out at which -they should go, and so escape his 
roaring. 

Saith he, Thou art a great sinner, a horrible sinner, a 
profane-hearted wretch, one that cannot be matched for a 
vile one in the country. 

And all this while Christ says to his ministers, Offer 



276 RICHES OF BUNYAK. 

mercy in the first place to the biggest sinners. So that 
this temptation drives thee directly into the arms of Jesus 
Christ. 

Was therefore the tempted but aware, he might say, 
Aye, Satan, so I am, I am a sinner of the biggest size, and 
therefore have most need of Jesus Christ ; yea, because I 
am such a wretch, therefore Jesus Christ calls me ; yea, 
he calls me first — the first proffer of the gospel is to be 
made to the Jerusalem sinner. I am he ; wherefore stand 
back, Satan, make way for me, my right is first to come to 
Jesus Christ. 

This now will be like for like. This would foil the 
devil. This would make him say, I must not deal with 
this man thus ; for then I put a sword into his hand to cut 
off my head. 

Well, sinner, thou now speakest like a Christian ; but 
say thus in a strong spirit in the hour of temptation, and 
then thou wilt, to thy commendation and comfort, quit 
thyself well. 

This improving of Christ in dark hours is the life, 
though the hardest part of our Christianity. We should 
neither stop at darkness, nor at the raging of our lusts, but 
go on in a way of venturing and casting the whole of our 
concerns for the next world at the foot of Jesus Christ. 
This is the way to make the darkness light, and also to 
allay the raging of our corruption. 



What a brave encouragement is it for one that is come 
for grace to the throne of grace, to see so great a number 
already there on their seats, in their robes, with their 
palms in their hands and their crowns upon their heads, 
singing of salvation to God and the Lamb ! 

And I say again — and speak now to the dejected — me- 
thinks it would be strange, thou that art so afraid that 
the greatness of thy sins will be a bar unto thee, if amongst 
all this great number of pipers and harpers that are got to 



BUNYAN'S TEMPTATIONS. 277 

glory, thou canst not espy one that, when here, was as vile 
a sinner as thyself. Look, man ; they are there for thee to 
view them, and for thee to take encouragement to hope, 
when thou shalt consider what grace and mercy have done 
for them. Look again, I say, now thou art upon thy knees, 
and see if some that are among them have not done worse 
than thou hast done. And yet behold, they are set down ; 
and yet behold, they have crowns on their heads, their 
harps in their hands, and sing aloud of salvation to their 
God and the Lamb. Behold, tempted soul; dost thou not 
yet see what a throne of grace here is, and what multi- 
tudes are already arrived thither, to give thanks unto His 
name that sits thereon, and to the Lamb for ever and ever ? 
And wilt thou hang thy harp upon the willows, and go 
drooping up and down the world, as if there was no God, 
no grace, no throne of grace, to apply thyself unto for mercy 
and grace to help in time of need ? Hark ; dost thou not 
hear them what they say? "Worthy," say they, "is the 
Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wis- 
dom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. 
And every creature which is in heaven" — where they 
are — " and on the earth" — where thou art — "and under 
the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are 
therein, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, and glory, 
and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and 
unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." 

And this is written for our learning, that we through 
patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope ; 
and that the drooping ones might come boldly to the throne 
of grace, to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of 
need. 



BUNYAN'S TEMPTATIONS. 
In general, €rod was pleased to take this course with 
me : First, to suffer me to be afflicted with temptations con- 
cerning the truths of the gospel, and then reveal them to 



278 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

me ; as sometimes I should lie under great guilt for sin, 
even crushed to the ground therewith ; and then the Lord 
would show me the death of Christ, yea, and so sprinkle 
my conscience with his blood, that I should find, and that 
before I was aware, that in that conscience where but just 
now did reign and rage the law, even there would rest and 
abide the peace and love of God through Christ. 



Thus by the strange and unusual assaults of the tempt- 
er, my soul was like a broken vessel driven as with the 
winds, and tossed, sometimes headlong into despair, some- 
times upon the covenant of works, and sometimes to wish 
that the new covenant and the conditions thereof might, so 
far forth as I thought myself concerned, be turned another 
way and changed. But in all these, I was as those that 
jostle against the rocks ; more broken, scattered, and rent. 
Oh, the unthought-of imaginations, frights, fears, and ter- 
rors that are effected by a thorough application of guilt 
yielding to desperation. This is the man that hath his 
dwelling among the tombs, with the dead — that is always 
crying out, and cutting himself with stones. But I say, all 
in vain ; desperation will not comfort him, the old covenant 
will not save him : nay, heaven and earth shall pass away 
before one jot or tittle of the word and law of grace will 
fail or be removed. This I saw, this I felt, and under this 
I groaned. Yet this advantage I got thereby, namely, a 
further confirmation of the certainty of the way of salva- 
tion, and that the Scriptures were the word of God. Oh, 
I cannot now express what I then saw and felt of the stead- 
fastness of Jesus Christ, the Rock of man's salvation : what 
was done could not be undone, added to, nor altered. 



Often when I have been making towards the promise, 
John 6:30, I have seen as if the Lord w^uld refuse my 
soul for ever ; I was often as if I had run upon the pikes, 
and as if the Lord had thrust at me, to keep me from him, 



BUNYAN'S TEMPTATIONS. 279 

as with a flaming sword. Then would I think of Esther, 
who went to petition the king contrary to the law. I 
thought also of Benhadad's servants, who went with ropes 
upon their heads to their enemies for mercy. The woman 
of Canaan also, that would not be daunted though called 
a dog by Christ, and the man that went to borrow bread at 
midnight, were also great encouragements unto me. 

I never saw such heights and depths in grace and love 
and mercy, as I saw after this temptation. Great sins 
draw out great grace ; and where guilt is most terrible and 
fierce, there the mercy of God in Christ, when showed to 
the soul, appears most high and mighty. When Job had 
passed through his calamity, he had twice as much as he 
had before. Blessed be God for Jesus Christ our Lord. 



If ever Satan and I did strive for any word of God in 
all my life, it was for this good word of Christ : " Him that 
cometh to me, I will in nowise cast out ;" he at one end, 
and I at the other. Oh, what work we made. It was for 
this, in John 6 : 30, I say, that we did so tug and strive : 
he pulled, and I pulled ; but, God be praised, I overcame 
him and got sweetness from it. 



I prayed to God, in prison, that he would comfort me, 
and give me strength to do and suffer what he should call 
me to ; yet no comfort appeared, but all continued hid. I 
was also at this time so really possessed with the thought 
of death, that oft I was as if on the ladder with a rope 
about my neck : only this was some encouragement to me : 
I thought I might now have an opportunity to speak my 
last words unto a multitude, which I supposed would come 
to see me die ; and thought I, if it must be so, if God will 
but convert one soul by my last words, I shall not count my 
life thrown away nor lost. 

But yet all the things of God were kept out of my sight, 
and still the tempter followed me with, But whither must 



280 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

you go when you die ? What will become of you ? Where 
will you be found in another world ? What evidence have 
you for heaven and glory, and an inheritance among them 
that are sanctified ? Thus was I tossed for many weeks, 
and knew not what to do ; at last, this consideration fell 
with weight upon me, That it was for the word and way 
of God that I was in this condition ; wherefore, I was en- 
gaged not to flinch a hair's breadth from it. 

I thought, also, that God might choose whether he 
would give me comfort now, or at the hour of death ; but 
I might not therefore choose whether I would hold my pro- 
fession or no. I was bound, but he was free : yea, it was 
my duty to stand to his word, whether he would ever look 
upon me, or save me at the last. Wherefore, thought I, the 
point being thus, I am for going on and venturing my eter- 
nal state with Christ, whether I have comfort here or no : 
if God doth not come in, thought I, I will leap off the lad- 
der even blindfold into eternity, sink or swim, come heaven 
come hell. Lord Jesus, if thou wilt catch me, do ; if not, 
I will venture for thy name. 



Before I had got thus far out of these my temptations, 
I did greatly long to see some ancient godly man's experi- 
ence, who had writ some hundreds of years before I was 
born ; for those who had writ in our days, I thought — but 
I desire them now to pardon me— that they had writ only 
that which others felt ; or else had, through the strength 
of their wits and parts, studied to answer such objections 
as they perceived others were perplexed with, without 
going themselves down into the deep. Well, after many 
such longings in my mind, the God in vvhose hands are all 
our days and ways, did cast into my hand one day a book 
of Martin Luther's : it was his Comment on the Galatians ; 
it was also so old that it was ready to fall piece from piece, 
if I did but turn it over. Now I was pleased much that 
such an old book had fallen into my hands ; the which 



SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS. 281 

when I had hut a little way perused, I found my condition 
in his experience so largely and profoundly handled, as if 
this book had been written out of my heart. This made 
me marvel ; for thus thought I, this man could not know 
any thing of the state of Christians now, but must needs 
write and speak the experience of former days. 

Besides, he doth most gravely also, in that book, debate 
of the rise of these temptations, namely, blasphemy, despe- 
ration, and the like ; showing that the law of Moses, as 
well as the devil, death, and hell, hath a very great hand 
therein: the which, at first, was very strange to me; but 
considering and watching, I found it so indeed. But of 
particulars here I intend nothing; only this methinks I 
must let fall before all men, I do prefer this book of Mar- 
tin Luther upon the Galatians, excepting the Holy Bible, 
before all the books that ever I have seen, as most fit for a 
wounded conscience. 



XVI. SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS. 

Christians, were you awake, here would be matter of 
wonder to you, to see a man assaulted with all the power 
of hell, and yet come off a conqueror. Is it not a won- 
der to see a poor creature, who in himself is weaker than 
the moth, stand against and overcome all devils, all the 
world, all his lusts and corruptions ? Or if he fall, is it not 
a wonder to see him, when devils and guilt are upon him, 
rise again, stand upon his feet again, walk with God again, 
and persevere after all this in the faith and holiness of the 
gospel ? He that knows himself, wonders ; he that knows 
temptation, wonders ; he that knows what falls and guilt 
mean, wonders : indeed, perseverance is a wonderful thing 
and is managed by the power of God ; for he only " is able 
to keep us from falling, and to present us faultless before 
the presence of his glory, with exceeding joy." 



282 RICHES OF BUNYAIn. 

He that is saved must, when this world can hold him 
no longer, have a safe conduct to heaven ; for that is the 
place where they that are saved must to the full enjoy 
their salvation. Here we are saved by faith and hope of 
glory ; but there we that are saved shall enjoy the end of 
our faith and hope, even the salvation of our souls. 

But now for a poor creature to be brought thither, this 
is the life of the point. But how shall I come thither ? 
There are heights and depths to hinder. Rom. 8 : 38, 39. 
Suppose the poor Christian is upon a sick-bed, beset with 
a thousand fears, and ten thousand at the end of that — 
sick-bed fears, and they are sometimes dreadful ones : fears 
that are begotten by the review of the sin perhaps of forty 
years' profession — fears that are begotten by fearful sug- 
gestions of the devil, the sight of death and the grave, and 
it may be of hell itself — fears that are begotten by the 
withdrawing and silence of God and Christ. But now, out 
of ail these the Lord will save his people ; not one sin, nor 
fear, nor devil shall hinder, nor the grave nor hell disap- 
point thee. But how must this be ? Why, thou must have 
a safe conduct to heaven. "What conduct? A conduct of 
angels. " Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth 
to minister for them that shall be heirs of salvation ?" 

These angels therefore are not to fail them that are 
saved, but must, as commissioned of God, come down from 
heaven to do this office for them. They must come, I say, 
and take the care of our souls, to conduct them safely into 
Abraham's bosom. It is not our meanness in the world, 
nor our weakness of faith, that shall hinder this ; nor shall 
the loathsomeness of our diseases make these delicate spirits 
shy of taking this charge upon them. Lazarus the beggar 
found this a truth — a beggar so despised of the rich glutton 
that he was not suffered to come within his gate ; a beggar 
full of sores and noisome putrefaction — yet behold, when 
he dies angels come from heaven to fetch him thither. 

True, death-bed temptations are ofttimes the most vio- 



SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS. 283 

lent, because then the devil plays his last game with us ; 
he is never to assault us more. Besides, perhaps God suf- 
fereth it thus to be that the entering into heaven may be 
the sweeter, and ring of this salvation the louder. it is 
a blessed thing for God to be our God and our guide, even 
unto death, and then for his angels to conduct us safely to 
glory. This is saving indeed. 



Mercy seems to be asleep when we are sinking ; for 
then w T e are as if all things were careless of us ; but it is 
but as a lion couchant, it will awake in time for our help. 



There are those that have been in the pit, Psa. 40 : 2, 
now upon mount Zion, with the harps of God in their hands, 
and with the sono- of the Lamb in their mouths. 



God hath set a Saviour against sin, a heaven against a 
hell, light against darkness, good against evil, and the 
breadth and length and depth and height of the grace that 
is in himself for my good, against all the power and strength 
and subtlety of every enemy. 



Is it not a thing amazing, to see one poor inconsiderable 
man, in a spirit of faith and patience, overcome all the 
threatenings, cruelties, afflictions, and sorrows that a whole 
world can lay upon him ? None can quail him, none can 
crush him, none can bend down his spirit ; none can 
make him forsake what he has received of God, a com- 
mandment to hold fast. His holy, harmless, and profitable 
notions, because they are spiced with grace, yield to him 
more comfort, joy, and peace; and do kindle in his soul a 
goodly fire of love to and zeal for God that all the waters 
of the world shall never be able to quench. 



Now, a creation none can destroy but a creator ; where- 
fore, here is comfort. But again, God hath created us in 
Christ Jesus ; that's another thing. The sun is created in 



284 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

the heavens ; the stars are created in the heavens ; the 
moon is created in the heavens. Who can reach them, 
touch them, destroy them, but the Creator ? Why, this is 
the case of the saint, because he has to do with a Creator: 
he is fastened to Christ, yea, is in him by an act of crea- 
tion. So that unless Christ and the creation of the Holy 
Ghost can be destroyed, he is safe that is suffering accord- 
ing to the will of God, and that hath committed the keeping 
of his soul to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator. 



The strife is now, Who shall be Lord of all : whether 
Satan the prince of this world, or Christ Jesus the Son of 
God ; or which can lay the best claim to God's elect, he 
that produces their sins against them, or he that laid down 
his heart's blood a price of redemption for them. Who 
then shall condemn, when Christ has died and does also 
make intercession ? 

Stand still, angels, and behold how the Father divides his 
Son a "portion with the great," and how he " divides the 
spoil with the strong ; because he hath poured out his soul 
unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors, and 
did bear the sin of many, and made intercession for the 
transgressors." The grace of God and the blood of Christ 
will, before the end of the world, make brave work among 
the sons of men. They shall come for a wonderment to 
God by Christ, and be saved for a wonderment for Christ's 
sake. "Behold, these shall come from far; and lo, these 
from the north and from the west, and these from the land 
of Sinim." 



" What man is he that feareth the Lord ?" says David ; 
" him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose." 

Now, to be taught of God, what is like it ? Yea, what 
is like being taught in the way that thou shalt choose ? 
Thou hast chosen the way to life, God's way ; but perhaps 
thy ignorance about it is so great, and those that tempt thee 



SECURITY OF CHRISTIANS. 285 

to turn aside are so many and so subtle, that they seem to 
outwit thee and confound thee with their guile. Well, but 
the Lord whom thou fearest will not leave thee to thy ig- 
norance, nor yet to thine enemies' power or subtlety, but 
will take it upon himself to be thy teacher and thy guide, 
and that in the w T ay that thou hast chosen. Hear, then, 
and behold thy privilege, thou that fearest the Lord; 
and — whoever wanders, turns aside, and swerveth from 
the way of salvation, whoever is benighted and lost in the 
midst of darkness — thou shalt find the way to heaven and 
the glory that thou hast chosen. 



There is between those that have taken sanctuary in 
Christ, and the bottomless pit, an invincible and mighty 
wall of grace and heavenly power, and of the merits of 
Christ to save to the utmost all and every one that are thus 
fled to him for safetv. 



Oh, how my soul did at this time [while in spiritual 
darkness] prize the preservation that God did set about his 
people. Ah, how safely did I see them walk whom God 
had hedged in. Now did those blessed places that spake 
of God's keeping his people, shine like the sun before me, 
though not to comfort me, yet to show me the blessed state 
and heritage of those whom the Lord had blessed. Now 
I saw that as God had his hand in all the providences and 
dispensations that overtake his elect, so he had his hand in 
all the temptations that they had to sin against him ; not 
to animate them in wickedness, but to choose their tempta- 
tions and troubles for them, and also to leave them for a 
time to such things only as might not destroy, but hum- 
ble them — as might not put them beyond, but lay them in 
the way of the renewing of his mercy. But Oh, what love, 
what care, what kindness and mercy did I now see, mixing 
itself with the most severe and dreadful of all God's ways 
to his people ! He would let David, Hezekiah, Solomon, 



286 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Peter, and others fall ; "but he would not let them fall into 
the sin unpardonable, nor into hell for sin, 0, thought I, 
these be the men that God hath loved — these be the men 
that God, though he chastiseth them, keeps in safety by 
him, and whom he makes to abide under the shadow of the 
Almighty. 



Surely his salvation, his saving, pardoning grace, is nigh 
them that fear him ; that is, to save them out of the hand 
of their spiritual enemies. The devil and sin and death 
do always wait even to devour them that fear the Lord ; 
but to deliver them from these, his salvation doth attend 
them. So, then, if Satan tempts, here is their salvation 
nigh ; if sin by breaking forth beguiles them, here is God's 
salvation nigh them ; yea, if death itself shall suddenly seize 
upon them, why, here is their God's salvation nigh them. 

I have seen that great men's little children must go 
no whither without their nurses be at hand. If they go 
abroad, their nurses must go with them ; if they go to 
meals, their nurses must go with them ; if they go to bed, 
their nurses must go with them ; yea, and if they fall 
asleep, their nurses must stand by them. 

0, my brethren, those little ones that fear the Lord are 
the children of the highest ; therefore they shall not walk 
alone, be at their spiritual meats alone, go to their sick-beds 
or to their graves alone : the salvation of their God is nigh 
them, to deliver them from the evil. This is then the glory 
that dwells in the land of them that fear the Lord. 



"He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him" 
Where now is the man that feareth the Lord ? let him 
hearken to this. What sayest thou, poor soul ? Will this 
content thee ? the Lord fulfil thy desires. thou that 
fearest the Lord, what is thy desire? "All my desire/' 
says David, "is all my salvation;" so sayest thou, "All my 
salvation is all my desire ?" Well, the desire of thy soul is 



THE PROMISES. 287 

granted thee ; yea, God himself hath engaged himself even 
to fulfil this thy desire. " He will fulfil the desires of 
them that fear him ; he will hear their cry, and will save 
them." this desire, when it cometh, what "a tree of 
life" will it be to thee ! Thou desirest to he rid of thy 
present trouble ; the Lord shall rid thee out of trouble. 
Thou desirest to be delivered from temptation ; the Lord 
shall deliver thee out of temptation. Thou desirest to be 
delivered from thy body of death ; and the Lord shall 
change this thy vile body, that it may be like to his 
glorious body. Thou desirest to be in the presence of 
God, and among the angels in heaven; this thy desire 
also shall be fulfilled, and thou shalt. be made equal to 
the angels. Exod. 6:6; 2 Peter, 2:9; Phil. 3 : 20, 21 ; 
Luke 16 : 22 ; 26 : 35, 36. " Oh, but it is long first." Well, 
learn first to live upon thy portion in the promise of it, and 
that will make thy expectation of it sweet. God will ful- 
fil thy desires ; God will do it, though it tarry long : " Wait 
for it, because it will surely come, it will not tarry." 



XVII. THE PROMISES. 

God hath strewed all the way from the gate of hell 
where thou wast, coming sinner, to the 2; ate of heaven 
whither thou art going, with flowers out of his own gar- 
den. Behold how the promises, invitations, calls, and en- 
couragements, like lilies, lie about thee. Take heed thou 
dost not tread them under foot. 



You say you believe the Scriptures to be the word of 
God. I say, Wert thou ever quickened from a dead state 
by the power of the Spirit of Christ through the covenant 
of promise ? I tell thee from the Lord, if thou hast been, 
thou hast felt such a quickening power in the words of 
Christ, that thou hast been lifted out of the dead condition 



288 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thou before wert in ; and that when thou wast under the 
guilt of sin, the curse of the law, the power of the devil, 
and the justice of the great God, thou hast been enabled 
by the power of God in Christ, revealed to thee by the 
Spirit through and by the Scripture, to look sin, death, hell, 
the devil, and the law, and all things that are at enmity 
with thee, with boldness and comfort in the face, through 
the blood, death, resurrection, and intercession of Christ, 
made mention of in the Scriptures. 

On this account, how excellent are the Scriptures to 
thy soul ! how much virtue dost thou see in such a 
promise, in such an invitation ! They are so large as to 
say, Christ will in nowise cast me out. My crimson sins 
shall be as white as snow. 

I tell thee, friend, there are some promises through and 
by which the Lord has helped me to lay hold of Jesus 
Christ, that I would not have out of the Bible for as much 
gold and silver as can lie between York and London piled 
up to the stars ; because through them Christ is pleased by 
his Spirit to convey comfort to my soul. I say, when the 
law curses, when the devil tempts, when hell-fire flames in 
my conscience, my sins with the guilt of them tearing of 
me, then is Christ revealed so sweetly to my poor soul 
through the promises, that all is forced to fly and leave off 
to accuse my soul. So also when the world frowns, when 
the enemies rage and threaten to kill me, then also the 
precious promises do weigh down all, and comfort the soul 
against all. 



The grace of God and the Spirit of grace are called or 
compared to a river, to answer those unsatiable desires, and 
to wash away those mountainous doubts, that attend those 
who indeed do thirst for that drink. The man that thirst- 
eth with spiritual thirst, fears nothing more than that there 
is not enough to quench his thirst : all the promises and 
s;j villus of God's ministers to such a man. seem but a? thim- 



THE PROMISES. 289 

bles instead of bowls : I mean, so long as his thirst and 
doubts walk hand in hand together. There is not enough 
in this promise, I find not enough in that promise, to quench 
the drought of my thirsting soul. He that thirst eth aright, 
nothing but God can quench his thirst. " My soul thirsteth 
for God, for the living God." Psalm 43 : 2 ; 63 : 1 ; 143 : 6. 
Well, what shall be done for this man ? Will his God humor 
him, and answer his desires ? Mark what follows : "When 
the poor and needy seek water, and there is none " — when 
all the promises seem to be dry, and like clouds that return 
after the rain — " and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the 
Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake 
them." Aye, but, Lord, what wilt thou do to quench their 
thirst ? "I will open rivers," saith he, "in high places, and 
fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wil- 
derness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water." 
Behold, here are rivers and fountains, a pool and springs, 
and all to quench the thirst of them that thirst for God. 



What greater argument to holiness, than to see the 
scriptures so furnished with promises of grace and salva- 
tion by Christ, that a man can hardly cast his eye into the 
Bible but he espies one or another of them ? Who would 
not live in such a house, or be a servant to such a prince ; 
who, besides his exceeding in good conditions, has gold and 
silver as common in his palace as stones are by the high- 
way side ? 



It sometimes so faileth out, that the very promise we 
have thought could not reach us to comfort us by any 
means, has at another time swallowed us up with joy un- 
speakable : Christ the true prophet has the right under- 
standing of the word as an Advocate, has pleaded it before 
God against Satan ; and having overcome him at the com- 
mon law, he has sent to let us know it by his good Spirit, 
to our comfort and the confusion of our enemies. 

Riches of Bunyan . 1 3 



290 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

XVIII. CHRISTIAN GRACES. 

FAITH. 

Faith ! Peter saith, faith, in the very trial of it, is much 
more precious than gold that perisheth. If so, what is the 
worth or value that is in the grace itself? 

Faith is so great an artist in arguing and reasoning 
with the soul, that it will bring over the hardest heart 
that it hath to deal with. It will bring to my remem- 
brance at once, both my vileness against God, and his 
goodness towards me ; it will show me, that though I de- 
serve not to breathe in the air, yet God will have me an 
heir of glory. 



Faith is the mother-grace, the root-grace, the grace that 
has all others in the bowels of it, and that from which all 
others flow. 



Faith will suck sweetness*out of God's rod ; but unbe- 
lief can find no comfort in his greatest mercies. 

Faith makes great burdens light ; but unbelief maketh 
light ones intolerably heavy. 

Faith helpeth us when we are down ; but unbelief 
throws us down when we are up. 

Unbelief may be called the ivhite devil; for it often- 
times, in its mischievous doing in the soul, shows as if it 
was an angel of light ; yea, it acteth like a counsellor of 
heaven. 

It is that sin above all others that most suiteth the wis- 
dom of our flesh. The wisdom of our flesh thinks it pru- 
dent to question a while, to stand back a while, to hearken 
to both sides a while ; and not to be rash, sudden, or un- 
advised in too bold a presuming upon Jesus Christ. 



There is nothing like faith to help at a pinch; feith 
dissolves doubts, as the sun drives away the mists. And 



FAITH. 291 

that you may not be put out, know your time of believiug 
is always. There are times when some graces may be out 
of use ; but there is no time wherein faith can be said to 
be so. Faith is the eye, the mouth, the hand, and one of 
these is of use all day long. Faith is to see, to receive, to 
work, or to eat; and a Christian should be seeing, or re- 
ceiving, or working, or feeding, all day long. Let it rain, 
let it blow, let it thunder, let it lighten, a Christian must 
still believe. 



" Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith you 
shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked :" 
to quench them, though they come from him as kindled 
with the very fire of hell. None knows, save he that feels 
it, how burning hot the fiery darts of Satan are ; and 
how, when darted, they kindle upon our flesh and unbe- 
lief; neither can any know the power and worth of faith 
to quench them, but he that hath it and hath power to 
act it. 

There are three things in faith, that directly tend to 
make a man depart from iniquity. 

1. It apprehendeth the truth of the being and great- 
ness of God, and so it aweth the spirit of a man. 

2. It apprehendeth the love of this God in Christ, and 
so it conquer eth and overcometh the spirit of a man. 

3. It apprehendeth the sweetness and blessedness of 
the nature of the godhead, and thence persuadeth the soul 
to desire here communion with him, that it may be holy, 
and the enjoyment of him when this world is ended, that 
it may be happy in and by him for ever. 



There is a man sows his field with wheat, but as he 
sows, some is covered with great clods : now, that grows 
as well as the rest, though it runs not upright as yet ; it 
grows, and yet is kept down. So do thy desires— when one 
shall remove the clod, the blade will soon point upward. 



292 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

I know thy mind ; that which keeps thee that thou 
canst not yet arrive to this, to desire to depart and to be 
with Christ, is because some strong doubt or clod of unbe- 
lief as to thy eternal welfare lies hard upon thy desiring 
spirit. Now let but Jesus Christ remove this clod, and thy 
desires will quickly start up to be gone. 

UPON THE SWALLOW. 

This pretty bird, how she flies and sirfgs ! 
But could she do so if she had not wings ? 
Her wings bespeak my faith, her songs my peace : 
When I believe and sing, my doubtings cease. 



TRUST. 
Why, this is the case, thou art bound for heaven, but 
tne way thither is dangerous. It is beset everywhere 
with evil angels, who would rob thee of thy soul. What 
now? Why, if thou wouldst go cheerfully on in thy dan- 
gerous journey, commit thy treasure, thy soul, to God to 
keep. And then thou mayest say with comfort, "Well, 
that care is over. For whatever I meet with in my way 
thither, my soul is safe enough ; the thieves, if they meet 
me, cannot come at that ; I know to whom I have com- 
mitted my soul, and I am persuaded that he will keep 
that to my joy and everlasting comfort against the great 
day." 



When a tyrant goes to dispossess a neighboring prince 
of what is lawfully his own, the men that he employ eth 
at arms to overcome and get the land, fight for half-crowns 
and the like, and are content with the wages ; but the 
tyrant is for the kingdom, nothing will serve him but the 
kingdom. This is the case : Men, when they persecute, 
are for the stuff; but the devil is for the soul, nor will any 
thing less than that satisfy him. Let him then that is a 
sufferer, commit the keeping of his soul to God, lest si nil 
and soul and all be lost at once. 



FAITH AND HOPE. 293 

Now, to commit this soul to God, is to carry it to him, 
to lift it to him upon bended knees, and to pray him for the 
Lord Jesus Christ's sake, to take it into his holy care, and 
to let it be under his keeping. Also, that he will please to 
deliver it from all those snares that are laid for it between 
this and the next world, and that he will see that it be 
forthcoming, safe and sound, at the great and terrible judg- 
ment, notwithstanding so many have engaged themselves 
against it. 



FAITH AND HOPE. 

No faith, no hope. To hope without faith, is to see 
without eyes, or to expect without grounds ; for " faith is 
the substance of things hoped for," as well with respect to 
the grace, as to the doctrine of faith 

Faith has its excellency in this, hope in that, and love 
in another thing. Faith will do that which hope cannot 
do, hope can do that which faith cannot do, and love can 
do things distinct from both their doings. Faith goes in 
the van, hope in the body, and love brings up the rear; 
and thus now abideth faith, hope, and charity. 

Faith is the mother-grace, for hope is born of her, but 
charity noweth from them both. 



Faith comes by hearing, hope by experience. Faith 
comes by hearing the word of God, hope by the credit that 
faith has given to it. Faith believes the truth of the word, 
hope waits for the fulfilling of it. Faith lays hold of that 
end of the promise that is next to us, to wit, as it is in the 
Bible ; hope lays hold of that end of the promise that is 
fastened to the mercy-seat. For the promise is like a 
mighty cable that is fastened by one end to a ship, and by 
the other to the anchor. The soul is the ship where faith 
is, and to which the hither end of this cable is fastened ; 
but hope is the anchor that is at the other end of this ca- 
ble, and " which entereth into that within the veil." 



294 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Thus faith and hope getting hold of both ends of the 
promise, they carry it safely all away. 

Faith looks to Christ as dead, buried, and ascended ; 
and hope to his second coming. Faith looks to him for jus- 
tification, hope for glory. 

Faith fights for doctrine, hope for a reward; faith for 
what is in the Bible, hope for what is in heaven. 

Faith purifies the heart from bad principles, hope from 
bad manners. 2 Peter, 3:11, 14 

Faith sets hope at work, hope sets patience at work. 
Faith says to hope, Look for what is promised ; hope says 
to faith, So I do, and will wait for it too. 

Faith looks through the word of God in Christ ; hope 
looks through faith, beyond the world, to glory. 

Thus faith saves, and thus hope saves. Faith saves by 
laying hold of God by Christ ; hope saves by prevailing with 
the soul to suffer all troubles, afflictions, and adversities that 
it meets with betwixt this and the world to come, for the 
sake thereof. Take the matter in this plain similiude : 

There was a king that adopted such a one to be his 
child, and clothed him with the attire of the children of the 
king, and promised him that if he would fight his father's 
battles and walk in his father's ways, he should at last 
share in his father's kingdom. He has received the adop- 
tion and the king's robe, but not yet his part in the king- 
dom ; but now, hope of a share in that will make him fight 
the king's battles, and also tread the king's paths. Yea, 
and though he should meet with many things that have a 
tendency to deter him from so doing, yet thoughts of the 
interest promised in the kingdom, and hopes to enjoy it, will 
make him cut his way through those difficulties, and so save 
him from the ruin that those obstructions would bring upon 
him, and will, in conclusion, usher him into a personal pos- 
session and enjoyment of that inheritance. 

Hope has a thick skin, and will endure many a blow ; 
it will put on patience as a vestment, it will wade through 



PATIENCE. 295 

a sea of blood, it will endure all things if it be of the right 
kind, for the joy that is set before it. Hence patience is 
called "patience of hope," because it is hope that makes 
the soul exercise patience and long-suffering under the 
cross, until the time comes to enjoy the crown. 



Learn of Abraham not to faint, stumble, or doubt, at 
the sight of your own weakness ; for if you do, hope will 
stay below, and creak in the wheels as it goes, because it 
will want the oil of faith. 



HOPE. 

Hope is the grace that relieves the soul when dark and 
weary. Hope calls upon the soul not to forget how far it 
is arrived in its progress towards heaven. Hope will point 
and show it the gate afar off; and therefore it is called the 
hope of salvation. 

True hope, in the right exercise of it upon God, makes 
no stumble at weakness or darkness, but rather worketh up 
the soul to some comfort by these. Thus Abraham's hope 
wrought by his weakness. And as for the dark, it is its ele- 
ment to act in that, " For hope which is seen is not hope." 



Hope is a head-grace and governing. There are several 
lusts in the soul that cannot be mastered, if hope be not in 
exercise — especially if the soul be in great and sore trials. 
There is peevishness and impatience, there is fear and de- 
spair, there is doubting and misconstruing of God's present 
hand ; and all these become masters, if hope be not stir- 
ring ; nor can any grace besides put a stop to their tumult- 
uous raging in the soul. But now, hope in God makes 
them all hush, takes away the occasion of their working, 
and lays the soul at the foot of God. 



PATIENCE. 
"And he stayed yet other seven days." This staying 



296 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

shows us that he exercised patience, waiting God's leisure 
till the flood should he taken away. This grace, therefore, 
has yet seven days' work to do, "before he ohtained any fur- 
ther testimony that the waters were decreasing. this 
staying work is hard work. Alas, sometimes patience is 
accompanied with so much heat and feverishness, that 
every hour seems seven until the end of the trial, and the 
hlessing promised he possessed hy the waiting soul. It may 
he, Noah might not he altogether herein a stranger. I am 
sure the psalmist was not, in that he often under affliction 
cries, But how long, Lord ; for ever ? Make haste. 
Lord, how long ? 



LOYE. 
Love is the very quintessence of all the graces of the 
gospel. 



FEAR. 
It seems to me as if this grace of fear was the darling 
grace, the grace that God sets his heart upon at the high- 
est rate. As it were, he embraces and lays in his hosom 
the man that hath and grows strong in this grace of the 
fear of God. 



This grace of fear is the softest and most tender of God's 
honor of all the graces. It is that tender, sensible, and 
trembling grace, that keepeth the soul upon its continual 
watch. To keep a good watch is, you know, a wonderful 
•safety to a place that is in continual danger because of the 
enemy. Why, this is the grace that setteth the watch, and 
that keepeth the watchman awake. 

A man cannot watch as he should, if he be destitute of 
fear : let him be confident, and he sleeps ; he unadvisedly 
lets into the garrison those that should not come there. 



This fear of the Lord is the pulse of the soul ; and as 



FEAR. 297 

some pulses beat stronger, some weaker, so is this grace of 
fear in the soul. They that beat best are a sign of best 
life ; but they that beat worst, show that life is present. As 
long as the pulse beats, we count not that the man is dead, 
though weak ; and this fear, where it is, preserves to ever- 
lasting life. Pulses there are also that are intermitting ; 
to wit, such as have their times of beating for a little, a 
little time to stop, and beat again : true, these are danger- 
ous pulses, which, nevertheless, are a sign of life. This 
fear of God also is sometimes like this intermitting pulse ; 
there are times when it forbears to work, and then it works 
again. David had an intermitting pulse ; Peter had an in- 
termitting pulse, as also many other of the saints of God. 
I call that an intermitting pulse, with reference to the fear 
we speak of, when there is some obstruction by the work- 
ings of corruption in the soul : I say, some obstruction from 
and hinderance of the continual motion of this fear of God ; 
yet none of these — though they are various, and some oi 
them signs of weakness — are signs of death, but life. " I 
will put my fear in their heart, and they shall not depart 
from me." 



Where the fear of the Lord and sin are, it will be with 
the soul as it was with Israel when Amri and Tibni strove 
to reign among them both at once. One of them must be 
put to death, they cannot live together. Sin must down, 
for the fear of the Lord begetteth in the soul a hatred 
against it, an abhorrence of it; therefore sin must die, that 
is, as to the affections and lusts of it. 



"Thy heart shall fear and be enlarged" — enlarged 
towards God, enlarged to his ways, enlarged to his holy 
people, enlarged in love after the salvation of others. In- 
deed, when this fear of God is wanting, though the profes- 
sion be never so famous, the heart is shut up and strait- 
ened, and nothing is done in that princely free spirit 

13* 



298 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

which is called " the spirit of the fear of the Lord," but 
with grudging, legally, or with desire of vain glory. Psa. 
54:12; Isa. 11 : 2. 



If a king will keep a town secure to himself, let him 
be sure to man sufficiently the main fort thereof. If he 
have twenty thousand men well armed, if they lie scat- 
tered here and there, the town may be taken for all that ; 
but if the main fort be well manned, then the town is 
more secure. What if a man had all the parts, yea, all 
the arts of men and angels, that will not keep the heart to 
God. 

But when the heart, this principal fort, is possessed 
with the fear of God, then he is safe, not else. 



they are a sweet couple, to wit, a Christian conver- 
sation coupled with fear. 



Your great, ranting, swaggering roysters, that are ig- 
norant of the nature of this fear of God, count it a poor, 
sneaking, pitiful, cowardly spirit in men to fear and trem- 
ble before the Lord. But whoso looks back to jails and 
gibbets, to the sword and the burning stake, shall see in 
the martyrs there the most mighty and invincible spirit 
that has been in the world. 



This grace of fear can make the man that in many 
other things is not capable of serving God, serve him better 
than those that have all else without it. Poor Christian 
man, thou hast scarce been able to do any thing for God 
all thy days, but only to fear the Lord. Thou art no 
preacher, and so canst not do him service that way : thou 
art no rich man, and so canst not do him service with out- 
ward substance : thou art no wise man, and so canst not 
do any thing that way ; but here is thy mercy, thou fearest 
God. Though thou canst not preach, thou canst fear God. 



FEAR. 299 

Though thou hast no hread to feed the belly, nor fleece to 
clothe the back of the poor, thou canst fear God. how 
blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, because this duty 
of fearing of God is an act of the mind, and may be done 
by the man that is destitute of all things but that holy and 
blessed mind. 

Blessed, therefore, is that man ; for God hath not laid 
the comfort of his people in the doing of external duties, 
nor the salvation of their souls, but in believing, loving, 
and fearing God. Neither hath he laid these things in 
actions done in their health, nor in the due management 
of their most excellent parts, but in the receiving of Christ, 
and fear of God ; the which, good Christian, thou mayest 
do, and do acceptably, even though thou shouldst lie bedrid 
all thy days ; thou mayest also be sick and believe, be sick 
and love, be sick and fear God, and so be a blessed man. 

And here the poor Christian hath something to answer 
them that reproach him for his ignoble pedigree, and short- 
ness of the glory of the wisdom of the world. True, may 
that man say, I was taken out of the dunghill, I was born 
in a base and low estate ; but I fear God. I have no 
worldly greatness, nor excellency of natural parts, but I 
fear God. 

When Obadiah met with Elijah, he gave him no worldly 
and fantastical compliment, nor did he glory in his promo- 
tion by Ahab the king of Israel, but gravely and after a 
gracious manner said, " I thy servant fear the Lord from 
my youth." Also, when the mariners inquired of Jonah, 
saying, "What is thine occupation, and whence comest 
thou ; what is thy country, and of what people art thou?" 
this was the answer he gave them : "I am a Hebrew, 
and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, which hath made 
the sea and the dry land." Jonah 1:8, 9. 

Indeed this answer is the highest and most noble in the 
world, nor are there any, save a few, that in truth can 
thus express themselves, though other answers they have 



300 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

enough : most can say, I have wisdom, or might, or riches, 
or friends, or health, or the like ; these are common, and 
are greatly boasted in by the most ; but the man that fear- 
eth God can say, when they say to him, What art thou ? 
" I thy servant do fear the Lord:" he is the man of many, 
he is to be honored of men, though this, to wit, that he 
feareth the Lord, is all that he hath in this world. He 
hath the thing, the honor, the life, and glory, that is last- 
ing; his blessedness will abide when all men's but his is 
buried in the dust, in shame and contempt. 



Dost thou fear God ? The least drachm of that fear 
giveth the privilege to be blessed with the greatest saint : 
" He will bless them that fear the. Lord, small and great." 
Psalm 115 : 13. Art thou in thine own thoughts, or in the 
thoughts of others, of these last small ones, small in grace, 
small in gifts, small in esteem upon this account ? Yet if 
thou fearest God, if thou fearest God indeed, thou art cer- 
tainly blessed with the best of saints. The least star stands 
as fixed as the brightest of them all, in heaven. " He shall 
bless them that fear him, small and great." He shall 
bless them, that is, with the same blessing of eternal life. 
For the difference in degrees of grace in saints doth not 
make the blessing, as to its nature, differ. It is the same 
heaven, the same life, the same glory, and the same eter- 
nity of felicity, that they are in the text promised to be 
blessed with. Christ at the day of judgment particularly 
mentioneth and owneth the least: "Inasmuch as ye did it 
not to one of the least." The least then was there, in his 
kingdom and in his glory, as well as the greatest of all. 



Dost thou fear God ? Why, the Holy Ghost hath on 
purpose indited for thee a whole psalm to sing concern- 
ing thyself. So that thou mayest even as thou art, in thy 
calling, bed, journey, or whenever, sing out thine own 
blessed and happy condition to thine own comfort, and the 



FEAR. 301 

comfort of thy fellows. The psalm is called the 128th 
Psalm. 

" Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; he is their 
help and their shield." Psalm 115:11. Now what a 
privilege is this : an exhortation in general to sinners, as 
sinners, to trust in him, is a privilege great and glorious ; 
hut for a man to be singled out from his neighbors, for a 
man to be spoken to from heaven as it were by name, and 
to be told that God has given him a license, a special and 
peculiar grant to trust in him, this is abundantly more; 
and yet this is the grant that God has given that man that 
feareth the Lord. 



" fear the Lord, ye his saints, for there is no want to 
them that fear him. The young lions do lack, and suffer 
hunger; but they that seek the Lord" — that fear him — 
" shall want no good thing." Psalm 34 : 9, 10. 

Not any thing that God sees good for them, shall those 
men want that fear the Lord. If health will do them 
good, if sickness will do them good, if riches will do them 
good, if poverty will do them good, if life will do them 
good, if death will do them good, then they shall not want 
them ; neither shall any of these come nigh them, if they 
will not do them good. 



Sinner, hast thou deferred to fear the Lord ? Is thy 
heart still so stubborn as not to say yet, Let us fear the 
Lord ? 0, the Lord hath taken notice of this thy rebellion, 
and is preparing some dreadful judgments for thee. " Shall 
I not visit for these things, saith the Lord ; shall not my 
soul be avenged of such a nation as this ?" 

Sinner, why shouldst thou pull vengeance down up- 
on thee? why shouldst thou pull vengeance down from 
heaven upon thee ? Look up ; perhaps thou hast already 
been pulling this great while, to pull it down upon thee. 
Oh, pull no longer ; why shouldst thou be thine own ex- 



302 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ecutioner ? Fall down upon thy knees, man, and up with 
thy heart and thy hands to the God that dwells in the 
heavens ; cry, yea, cry aloud, " Lord, unite my heart to 
fear thy name, and do not harden mine heart from thy 
fear." Thus holy men have cried before thee, and by cry- 
ing have prevented judgment. 



HUMILITY. 

I take the pinnacles on the top of the temple to be 
types of those lofty, airy notions, with which some delight 
themselves, while they hover like birds above the solid 
and godly truths of Christ. Satan attempted to entertain 
Christ Jesus with this type and antitype at once, when he 
set him on one of the pinnacles of the temple, and offered 
to thrust him upon a false confidence in God, by a false 
and unsound interpretation of a text. Matt. 4 : 5, 6 ; Luke 
4:9-11. 

You have some men who cannot be content to worship 
in the temple, but must be aloft ; no place will serve them 
but pinnacles — pinnacles, that they may be speaking in 
and to the air, that they may be promoting their heady 
notions, instead of solid truth — not considering that now 
they are where the devil would have them be. They strut 
upon their points, their pinnacles ; but let them look to it : 
there is difficult standing upon pinnacles ; their neck, their 
soul, is in danger. We read, God is in his temple, not upon 
these pinnacles. Psalm 4 ; Hab. 2 : 20. 

It is true, Christ was once upon one of these ; but the 
devil set him there, with intent to dash him in pieces by a 
fall ; and yet even then told him, if he would venture to 
tumble down, he should be kept from dashing his foot 
against a stone. To be there, therefore, was one of Christ's 
temptations ; consequently one of Satan's stratagems : npr 
went he thither of his own accord, for he knew that there 
was danger ; he loved not to clamber pinnacles. 

This should teach Christians to be low and little in 



REPENTANCE. 303 

their own eyes, and to forbear to intrude into airy and vain 
speculations, and to take heed of being puffed up with a 
foul and empty mind. 



ZEAL. 

The loaves or showbread in the temple were to have 
frankincense strewed upon them as they stood upon the 
golden table, which was a type of the sweet perfumes of 
the sanctification of the Holy Ghost. 

They were to be set upon the pure table, new and hot, 
to show that God delights in the company of new and 
warm believers. " I remember thee, the kindness of thy 
youth; when Israel was a child, I loved him." Men at 
first conversion are like to a cake well baked, and new 
taken from the oven ; they are warm, and cast forth a 
very fragrant scent, especially when, as warm, sweet in- 
crease is strewed upon them. 

When the showbread was old and stale, it was to be 
taken away, and new and warm put in its place, to show 
that God has but little delight in the service of his own 
people, when their duties grow stale and mouldy. There- 
fore he removed his old, stale, mouldy church of the Jews 
from before him, and set in their room upon the golden 
table the warm church of the Gentiles. 



Zeal without knowledge is like a mettled horse with- 
out eyes, or like a sword in a madman's hand ; and there 
is no knowledge where there is not the word. 



REPENTANCE. 
Repentance carries with it a divine rhetoric, and per- 
suades Christ to forgive a multitude of sins committed 
against him. 



One difference between true and false repentance lieth 
in this: the man who truly repents crieth out against his 



304 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

heart ; but the other, as Eve, against the serpent, or some- 
thing else. 

There are abundance of dry-eyed Christians in the 
world, and abundance of dry-eyed duties too — duties that 
never were wet with the tears of contrition and repent- 
ance. 



Take heed that a sin in thy life goes not unrepented of, 
for that will make a flaw in thine evidence, a wound in 
thy conscience, and a breach in thy peace ; and a hundred 
to one if at last it doth not drive all the grace in thee into 
so dark a corner of thy heart, that thou shalt not be able, 
for a time, by all the torches that are burning in the gospel, 
to find it out to thy own comfort and consolation. 



As vices hang together, and have the links of a chain, 
dependence one upon another, even so the graces of the 
Spirit also are the fruits of one another, and have such 
dependence on each other that the one cannot be without 
the other. 

No faith, no fear of God : devil's faith, devil's fear ; 
saints' faith, saints' fear. 



THE THRONE OF G-RACE. 305 



XIX. PRAYER. 

CHARACTERISTICS OF PRAYER. 
What is prayer ? A sincere, sensible, affectionate pour- 
ing out of the soul to God, through Christ, in the strength 
and assistance of the Spirit, for such things as God hath 
promised. 

The best prayers have often more groans than words. 



Alas, how few there be in the world whose heart and 
mouth in prayer shall go together. Dost thou, when thou 
askest for the Spirit, or faith, or love to God, to holiness, to 
saints, to the word, and the like, ask for them with love to 
them, desire of them, hungering after them ? Oh, this is a 
mighty thing ; and yet prayer is no more before God than 
as it is seasoned with these blessed qualifications. Where- 
fore it is said, that while men are praying, God is search- 
ing the heart to see what is the meaning of the Spirit, or 
whether there be the Spirit and his meaning in all that the 
mouth hath uttered, either by words, sighs, or groans, be- 
cause it is by him and through his help only that any make 
prayers according to the will of God. Rom. 8 : 26, 27. 



PREPARATION FOR PRAYER. 
Before you enter into prayer, ask thy soul these ques 
tions : To what end, my soul, art thou retired into this 
place ? Art thou not come to discourse the Lord in prayer ? 
Is he present, will he hear thee ? Is he merciful, will he 
help thee ? Is thy business slight, is it not concerning the 
welfare of thy soul ? What words wilt thou use to move 
him to compassion ? 

THE THRONE OF GRACE. 
We know the throne of grace from other thrones by the 
glory that it always appears in when revealed to us of 



306 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

God : its glory outshines all ; there is no such glory to be 
seen anywhere else, either in heaven or earth. But I say, 
this comes by the sight that God gives, not by any excel- 
lency that there is in my natural understanding, as such : 
my understanding and apprehension, simply as natural, are 
blind and foolish ; wherefore, when I set to work in mine 
own spirit and in the power of mine own abilities, to reach 
to this throne of grace and to perceive somewhat of the 
glory thereof, then am I dark, rude, foolish ; I see nothing, 
and my heart grows flat, dull, savorless, lifeless, and has 
no warmth in the duty ; but it mounts up with wings like 
an eagle when the throne is truly apprehended. 



This throne is the seat of grace and mercy, and there- 
fore it is called the mercy-seat and throne of grace. This 
throne turns all into grace, all into mercy ; this throne 
makes all things work together for good. It is said of 
Saul's sons, 2 Sam. 21 : 10-14, they were not buried after 
they were hanged until water dropped upon them out of 
heaven ; and it may be said of us, there is nothing suffered 
to come near us until it is washed in that water that pro- 
ceeds from the throne of grace. Hence afflictions flow 
from grace ; persecutions flow from grace ; poverty, sick- 
ness, yea, death itself is now made ours by the grace of 
God through Christ. Psa. 119: 67-71 ; 1 Cor. 3 : 22 ; Rev. 
3 : 19 ; Heb. 12:5-7. grace, happy church of God ! 
all things that happen to thee are for Christ's sake turned 
into grace. They talk of the philosopher's stone, and how 
if one had it, it would turn all things into gold. Oh, 
but can it turn all things into grace — can it make all 
things work together for good ? No, no ; this quality, vir- 
tue, excellency — what shall I call it ? — nothing has in it 
but the grace that reigns on the throne of grace, the river 
that proceeds from the throne of God. This, this turns 
majesty, authority, the highest authority, glory, wisdom, 
faithfulness, justice, and all into grace. Here is a throne : 



THE THRONE OF GRACE. 307 

may God let us see it. John had the honor to see it, and 
to see the streams proceeding from it. sweet sight, 
heart-cherishing sight! "He showed me a pure river of 
water of life proceeding out of the throne of God." 

Indeed, as was hinted before, in the days of the reign of 
antichrist there are not those visions of this throne, nor of 
the river that proceedeth therefrom : now he holdeth back 
the face of his throne, and spreadeth a cloud upon it ; but 
the preserving, saving benefits thereof we have, as also 
have all the saints in the most cloudy and dark day. And 
since we can see so little, we must believe the more ; and 
by believing, give glory to God. We must also labor for 
more clear scripture knowledge of this throne, for the holy 
word of God is the perspective-glass by which we may, and 
the magnifying-glass that will cause us to behold with 
open face the glory of this Lord. 2 Cor. 3 : IS. 



l( A throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the 
throne ;" that is, God. And this intimates his desirable rest 
for ever; for to sit is to rest, and Christ is his rest for ever. 
Was it not therefore well worth the seeing — yea, if John 
had taken the pains to go up thither upon his hands and 
knees ? 



It is grace that chooses, it is grace that calleth, it is 
grace that preserveth, and it is grace that brings to glory, 
even the grace that, like a river of water of life, proceeds 
from this " throne of grace ;" and hence it is, that from 
first to last, we must cry, Grace, grace, unto it. 

Thus you see what a throne the Christian is invited to : 
it is a throne of grace whereon doth sit the God of all 
grace ; it is a throne of grace before which the Lord Jesus 
ministers continually for us ; it is a throne of grace sprin- 
kled with the blood, and in the midst of which is a Lamb 
as it had been slain ; it is a throne with a rainbow round 
about it, which is the token of the everlasting covenant, 



308 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

and out of which proceeds a river, a pure river of water of 
life, clear as crystal. 

Look then for these signs of the throne of grace, all 
you that would come to it, and rest not until by some of 
them you know that you are even come to it : they are 
all to be seen, have you butjeyes ; and the sight of them is 
very delectable, and has a natural tendency to revive and 
quicken the soul. 



PRAYER IN THE NAME OF CHRIST. 

He that thinks to find grace at God's hand, and yet 
enters not into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, will find 
himself mistaken, and will find a dead instead of a living 
way. For if not any thing below or besides blood can 
yield remission on God's part, how should remission be 
received by us without our acting faith therein ? "We are 
justified by his blood, through faith in his blood. 

Wherefore look, when thou approachest the throne of 
grace, that thou give diligence to seek for the "Lamb as it 
had been slain," that is in the midst of the throne of grace ; 
and then thou wilt have not only a sign that thou pre- 
sentest thy supplication to God where and as thou shouldst, 
but there also wilt thou meet with matter to break, to 
soften, to bend, to bow, and to make thy heart as thou 
wouldst have it. This sight shall dissolve and melt down 
the spirit of that man that is upon his knees before the 
throne of grace for mercy ; especially when he shall see, 
that not his prayers, nor his tears, nor his wants, but the 
blood of the Lamb, has prevailed with a God of grace to 
give mercy and grace to an undeserving sinner. 



God hath prepared a golden altar for thee to offer thy 
prayers and tears upon, coming sinner. A golden altar ! 
It is called a golden altar, to show what worth it is of in 
God's account ; for this golden altar is Jesus Christ — this 
altar sanctifies thy gift, and makes thy sacrifice acceptable. 



BENEFIT OF PRAYER. 309 

This altar then makes thy groans golden groans, thy 
tears golden tears, and thy prayers golden prayers, in the 
eye of that God thou comest to. 



BENEFIT OF PRAYER. 
Pray often ; for prayer is a shield for the soul, a sacri- 
fice to God, and a scourge for Satan. 



Look yonder ! Ah, methinks mine eyes do see 
Clouds edged with silver, as fine garments be; 
They look as if they saw the golden face 
That makes black clouds most beautiful with grace. 

Unto the saints' sweet incense of their prayer, 
These smoky curled clouds I do compare; 
For as these clouds seem edged or laced with gold, 
Their prayers return with blessings manifold. 



Prayer is as the pitcher that fetcheth water from the 
brook, therewith to water the herbs : break the pitcher 
and it will fetch no water, and for want of water the gar- 
den withers. 



The godly have found all other places, the throne of 
grace excepted, empty, and places that hold no water. They 
have been at mount Sinai for help, but could find nothing 
there but fire and darkness, but thunder and lightning, but 
earthquakes and trembling, and a voice of killing words. 

They have sought for grace by their own performances ; 
but, alas, they have yielded them nothing but wind and 
confusion : not a performance, not a duty, not an act in any 
part of religious worship, but they, looking upon it in the 
glass of the Lord, do find it specked and defective. 

They have sought for grace by their resolutions, their 
vows, their purposes, and the like ; but alas, they all do as 
the other, discover that they have been very imperfectly 
managed, and so are such as can by no means help them 
to grace. 



310 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

They have gone to their tears, their sorrow, and re- 
pentance, if perhaps they might find some help there ; 
hut all has fled away like the early dew. 

They have gone to God as the great Creator, and have 
beheld how wonderful his works have been ; they have 
looked to the heavens above, to the earth beneath, and to 
all their ornaments ; but neither have these, nor what is of 
them, yielded grace to those that had sensible want thereof. 

They have gone with these pitchers to their fountains, 
and have returned empty and ashamed; they found no 
water, no river of water of life. 

Paul, not finding it in the law, despairs to find it in 
any thing else below, but presently betakes himself to look 
for it where he had not yet found it : he looked for it by 
Jesus Christ, who is the throne of grace, where he found 
it, and rejoiced in hope of the glory of God. 



0, when a God of grace is upon a throne of grace, and 
a poor sinner stands by and begs for grace, and that in the 
name of a gracious Christ, in and by the help of the Spirit 
of grace, can it be otherwise but such a sinner must obtain 
mercy and grace to help in time of need ? 



All the sorrow that is mixed with our Christianity pro- 
ceeds, as the procuring cause, from ourselves, not from the 
throne of grace ; for that is the place where our tears are 
wiped away, and also where we hang up our crutches : the 
streams thereof are pure and clear, not muddy nor frozen, 
but warm and delightful, and they make glad the city of 
God. 



DISCOURAGEMENTS IN PRAYER. 

There is an aptness in those that come to the throne of 

grace, to cast every degree of faith away that carries not in 

it self-evidence of its own being and nature, thinking thai 

if it be faith, it must be known to the soul ; yea, if it be 



DISCOURAG-EMENTS IN PRAYER. 311 

faith, it will do so and so — even so as the highest degree 
of faith will do : when, alas, faith is sometimes in a calm, 
sometimes up, and sometimes down, and sometimes in con- 
flict with sin, death, and the devil. Faith now has hut 
little time to speak peace to the conscience ; it is now 
struggling for life, it is now fighting with angels, with in- 
fernals ; all it can do now, is to cry, groan, sweat, fear, 
fight, and gasp for life. 



I know what it is to go to God for mercy, and stand all 
the while through fear afar off, being possessed with this, 
Will not God now smite me at once to the ground for my 
sins ? David thought something so when he said as he 
prayed, "Cast me not away from thy presence, and take 
not thy Holy Spirit from me." 

None know, but those that have them, what turns and 
returns, what coming on and going off, there are in the 
spirit of a man that indeed is awakened, and that stands 
awakened before the glorious Majesty in prayer. 



It is a great matter, in praying to God, not to go too far, 
nor come too short ; and a man is very apt to do one or the 
other. The Pharisee went so far, he was too bold ; he came 
into the temple making such a ruffle with his own excel- 
lencies, there was in his thoughts no need of a Mediator. 



It has been the custom of praying men to keep their 
distance, and not to be rudely bold in rushing into the pres- 
ence of the holy and heavenly Majesty, especially if they 
have been sensible of their own vileness and sins, as the 
prodigal, the lepers, and the poor publican were. Yea, 
Peter himself, when upon a time he perceived more than 
commonly he did of the majesty of Jesus his Lord, what 
doth he do ? "He fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, De- 
part from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord." 

Oh, when men see God and themselves, it fills them 



312 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

with holy fear of the greatness of the majesty of God, as 
well as with love to, and desire after, his mercy. 

What is poor sorry man, poor dust and ashes, that he 
should crowd up, and go jostlingly into the presence of the 
great God ? 



For my part, I find it one of the hardest things that I 
can put my soul upon, even to come to God, when warmly 
sensible that I am a sinner, for a share in grace, in mercy. 
Oh, methinks it seems to me as if the whole face of the 
heavens were set against me. Yea, the very thought of 
God, strikes me through ; I cannot bear up, I cannot stand 
before him ; I cannot but with a thousand tears say, " God 
be merciful to me a sinner." Ezra 9:15. 

At another time, when my heart is more hard and 
stupid, and when his terror doth not make me afraid, then 
I can come before him and ask mercy at his hand, and 
scarce be sensible of sin or grace, or that indeed I am be- 
fore God. But above all, they are the rare times, when 
I can go to God as the publican, sensible of his glorious 
majesty, sensible of my misery, and bear up, and affection- 
ately cry, " God be merciful to me a sinner." 



At certain times the most godly man in the world may 
be hard put to it by the sin that dwelleth in him ; yea, so 
hard put to it, that there can be no way to save himself 
from a fall, but by imploring heaven and the throne of 
grace for help. This is called the needy-time, the time 
when the wayfaring man that knocked at David's door 
shall knock at ours ; or when we are got into the sieve into 
which Satan did get Peter ; or when those fists are about 
our ears that were about Paul's ; and when that thorn 
pricks us that Paul said was in his flesh. But why, or how 
comes it to pass, that the godly are so hard put to it at 
these times, but because there is in them — that is, in their 
flesh — no good thing, but consequently all aptness to close 



DISCOURAGEMENTS REMOVED. 31:) 

in with the devil and his suggestions, to the overthrow of 
the soul ? 

But now, here we are presented w 7 ith a throne of grace, 
unto which, as David says, we must continually resort ; and 
that is the way to obtain relief and to find help in time of 
need. 



DISCOURAGEMENTS TO PRAYER REMOVED. 

Query. What would you have a poor creature do, that 
cannot tell how to pray ? 

Answer. Thou canst not, thou complainest, pray ; canst 
thou see thy misery ? Hath God showed thee that thou 
art by nature under the curse of his law 7 If so, do not mis- 
take. I know thou dost groan, and that most bitterly ; I am 
persuaded thou canst scarcely be found doing any thing in 
thy calling. But prayer breaks from thy heart. Have not 
thy groans gone up to heaven from every corner of thy 
house ? I know it is thus : and so also doth thine own sor- 
rowful heart witness thy tears and thy forgetfulness of thy 
calling. Is not thy heart so full of desires after the things 
of another world, that many times thou dost even forget 
the things of this world ? Prithee, read this scripture : 
Job 23 : 12. 

Query. Yea, but when I go in secret, and intend to 
pour out my soul before God, I can scarce say any thing 
at all. 

Answer. Ah, sweet soul, it is not thy words that God 
so much regards, that he will not mind thee except thou 
comest before him with some eloquent oration. His eye is 
on the brokenness of thy heart ; and that it is which makes 
the compassions of the Lord run over : "A broken and a 
contrite heart, God, thou wilt not despise." 

The stopping of thy words may arise from overmuch 
trouble in thy heart. David was so troubled sometimes 
that he could not speak. But this may comfort all such 
sorrowful hearts as thine, that though thou canst not 

Riches of Buny an . \ 4 



RICHES OF EUNYAN. 



through the anguish of thy spirit speak much, yet the Holy 
Spirit stirs up in thy heart groans and sighs so much the 
more vehement. 



AFFECTIONATE CONFIDENCE IN PRAYER. 

God has given thee his Son's righteousness to justify 
thee ; he has also, because thou art a son, sent forth the 
Spirit of his Son into thy heart to satisfy thee, and to help 
thee to cry unto him, Father, Father ! Wilt thou not cry ? 
wilt thou not desire ? Thy God has hidden thee open thy 
mouth ; he has hid thee open it wide, and promised, saying, 
" and I will fill it ;" and wilt thou not desire ? 

Oh, thou hast a license, a leave, a grant to desire ; 
wherefore, he not afraid to desire great mercies of the God 
of heaven. 

Objection. " But I am an unworthy creature." 

Answer. That is true ; hut God gives to no man for his 
worthiness, nor rejects any for their sinfulness, that come 
to him sensible of the want and worth of mercy for them. 
Besides, the desires of a righteous man, and the desires of 
his God, agree. God has a desire to thee, thou hast a de- 
sire to him. God desires truth in the inward parts, and so 
dost thou with all thy heart. God desires mercy, and to 
show it to the needy ; that is what thou also wantest, and 
what thy soul craves at his hand. 

Seek, man ; ask, knock, and do not be discouraged ; the 
Lord will grant all thy desires. Thou sayest thou art un- 
worthy to ask the greatest things, things spiritual and 
heavenly : well, will carnal things serve thee, and answer 
the desires of thy heart? Canst thou be content to be put 
off with a belly well filled and a back well clothed ? 

"Oh, better I never had been born." 

See ! thou wilt not ask the best, and yet canst not make 
shift without them. 

" Shift ? no ; no shift without them ; I am undone wit h- 
oul them, undone for over and ever," sayesi thou 



GOD'S METHOD OF ANSWERING PRAYER. 315 

Well tnen, desire. 

"So I do," sayest thou. 

Ah, but desire with more strong desires ; desire with 
more large desires ; desire spiritual gifts, covet them ear- 
nestly ; thou hast a license too to do so. God bids thee do 
so, for he hath said, "The desire of the righteous shall be 
granted." 



GOD'S METHOD OF ANSWERING PRAYER. 

" The desire of the righteous shall be granted." But I 
find it not so, says one ; for though I have desired and de- 
sired a thousand times upon my knees, for something that 
I want, yet I have not my desire ; and indeed, the consid- 
eration of this has made me question whether I am one of 
those to whom the promise of granting desires is made. 

Answer. What are the things thou desirest ; are they 
lawful or unlawful ? for a Christian may desire unlawful 
things. 

But we will suppose that the thing thou desirest is good, 
and that thy heart may be right in asking, as. suppose 
thou desirest more grace ; yet there are several things for 
thy instruction may be applied to thy objection : as, 

1. Thou, though thou desirest more of this, mayest not 
yet be so sensible of the worth of what thou askest, as 
perhaps God will have thee be before he granteth thy 
desire. 

2. Hast thou well improved what thou hast received 
already ? 

3. When God gives to his people the grant of their de- 
sires, he doth it so as may be best for our advantage : as, 

(1.) Just before a temptation comes; then if it rains 
grace on thee from heaven, it may be most for thy advan- 
tage. This is like God's sending plenty in Egypt just be- 
fore the years of famine came. 

(2.) Christians, even righteous men, are apt to lean too 
much to their own doings ; and God, to wean them from 



316 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

them, ofttimes defers to do, what they by doing expect, un- 
til in doing their spirits are spent, and they, as to doing, 
can do no longer. When they that cried for water, had 
cried till their spirits failed, and their tongue did cleave to 
the roof of their mouth for thirst, then the Lord did hear, 
and then the God of Israel did give them their desire. The 
righteous would be too light in asking, and would too much 
overprize their works, if their God should not sometimes 
deal in this manner with them. 

(3.) It is also to the advantage of the righteous, that 
they be kept and led in that way which will best improve 
grace already received, and that is, when they spin it out 
and use it to the utmost ; when they do with it as the 
prophet did with that meal's meat that he ate under the 
juniper-tree, "go in the strength of it forty days and forty 
nights, even to the mount of God." Or when they do as 
the widow did — spend upon their handful of flour in the 
barrel, and upon that little oil in the cruse, till God shall 
send more plenty. 

A little true grace will go a great way, yea, and do 
more wonders than we are aware of. If we have but grace 
enough to keep us groaning after God, it is not all the world 
that can destroy us. 

4. Perhaps thou may est be mistaken. The grace 
thou prayest for may in a great measure be come unto 
thee. 

Thou hast been desiring of God, thou sayest, more grace, 
but hast it not. 

But how, if while thou lookest for it to come to thee 
at one door, it come to thee at another ? And that we 
may a little inquire into the truth of this, let us a little 
consider what are the effects of grace in its coming to the 
soul, and then see if it has not been coming unto thee 
almost ever since thou hast set upon this fresh desire 
after it. 

(1.) Grace, in the general effect of it, is to mend the 



OOD'S METHOD OF ANSWERING PRAYER. 317 

soul, and to make it better disposed. Hence, when it 
comes, it brings convincing light along with it, by which a 
man sees more of his baseness than at other times. If, 
then, thou seest thyself more vile than formerly, grace by 
its coming to thee has done this for thee. 

(2.) Grace, when it comes, breaks and crumbles the 
heart in the sense and sight of its own vileness. A man 
stands amazed and confounded in himself; breaks and 
falls down on his face before God; is ashamed to lift up so 
much as his face to God, at the sight and apprehension of 
how wicked he is. 

(3.) Grace, when it comes, shows to a man more of the 
holiness and patience of God ; his holiness to make us won- 
der at his patience, and his patience to make us wonder at 
his mercy, that yet, even yet, such a vile one as I am 
should be admitted to breathe in the land of the living, yea 
more, suffered to come to the throne of grace. 

(4.) Grace is of a heart-humbling nature ; it will make 
a man account himself the most unworthy of any thing, 
of all saints. It will make a man put all others before 
him, and be glad too if he may be one beloved, though least 
beloved because most unworthy. It will make him with 
gladness accept of the lowest room, as counting all saints 
more worthy of exaltation than himself. 

(5.) Grace will make a man prize other men's graces 
and gracious actions above his own ; as he thinks every 
man's candle burns brighter than his, every jxian improves 
grace better than he, every good man does more sincerely 
his duty than he. And if these be not some of the effects 
of the renewings of grace, I will confess I have taken my 
mark amiss. 

(6.) Renewings of grace beget renewed self-bemoanings, 
self-condemnations, self-abhorrences. 

And say thou pray est for communion with, and the 
presence of God. God can have communion with thee 
and grant thee his presence, and all this shall, instead of 



318 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

comforting thee at present, more confound thee and make 
thee see thy wickedness. 

Some people think they never have the presence and 
renewings of God's grace upon them, but when they are 
comforted and when they are cheered up — when, alas, God 
may be richly with them, while they cry out by these 
visions, My sorrows are multiplied ; or, Because I have 
seen God, I shall die. 

And tell me now, all these things considered, has not 
grace, even the grace of God which thou hast so much 
desired, been coming to thee and working in thee in all 
these hidden methods ? Thus therefore thy desire is ac- 
complishing, and when it is accomplished will be sweet to 
thy soul. 

5. But we will follow thee a little in the way of thy 
heart. Thou sayest thou desirest, and desirest grace, yea, 
hast been a thousand times upon thy knees before God for 
more grace, and yet thou canst not attain. 

I answer, (1.) It maybe, the grace which thou prayest 
for is worth thy being upon thy knees yet a thousand times 
more. We find that usually they that go to king's courts 
for preferment, are there at great expenses, yea, and wait 
a great while, even until they have spent their whole 
estates, and worn out their patience too. 

Yet they at last prevail, and the thing desired comes ; 
yea, and when it is come, it sets them up anew and makes 
them better men, though they did spend all they had to 
obtain it, than ever they were before. Wait, therefore, 
wait, I say, on the Lord ; bid thy soul cheer up and wait. 
" Blessed are all they that wait for him." 

(2.) Thou must consider that great grace is reserved for 
great service. Thou desirest abundance of grace ; thou 
doest well, and thou shalt have what shall qualify thee for 
the service that God has for thee to do for him, and for his 
name in the world. The apostles themselves were to stay 
for great grace until the time their work was come. 



GOD'S METHOD OF ANSWERING PRAYER. 319 

I will not allot thy service, but assure thyself, when 
thy desire cometh, thou wilt have occasion for it — new 
work, new trials, new sufferings, or something that will 
call for the power and virtue of all the grace thou shalt 
have to keep thy spirit even, and thy feet from slipping, 
while thou art exercised in new engagements. 

Assure thyself thy God will not give thee straw, but he 
will expect brick. " For unto whomsoever much is given, 
of him much shall be required." Wherefore, as thou art 
busy in desiring more grace, be also desirous that wisdom 
to manage it with faithfulness may also be granted unto 
thee. 

Thou wilt say, Grace, if I had it, will do all this for me. 

It will, and will not. It will, if thou watch and be 
sober ; it will not, if thou be foolish and remiss. Men of 
great grace may grow consumptive in grace, and idleness 
may turn him that wears a plush jacket into rags. David 
w T as once a man of great grace, but his sin made the grace 
which he had so to shrink up and dwindle away as to 
make him cry out, take not thy Spirit utterly from 
me ! 

(3.) Or, perhaps God withholds what thou wouldst 
have, that it may be the more prized by thee when it 
comes. "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick; but when 
the desire cometh, it is a tree of life." 

(4.) Lastly. But dost thou think that thy more grace 
will exempt thee from temptations ? Alas, the more grace, 
the greater trials. Thou must be, for all that, like the ship 
of which thou readest : sometimes high, sometimes low ; 
sometimes steady, sometimes staggering ; and sometimes 
even at the end of thy very wits: "For so he brings us to 
our desired haven." 

Yet grace is the gold and preciousness of the righteous 
man : yea, and herein appears the uprightness of his soul, 
in that, though all these things attend the grace of God 
in him, yet he chooseth grace here above all, for that it 



320 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

makes him the more like God and his Christ, and for that 
it seasons his heart best to his own content ; and also for 
that it capacitates him to glorify God in the world. 



BELIEF IN- PRAYER. 
If from a sense of thy vileness thou do pour out thy 
heart to God, desiring to be saved from the guilt and 
cleansed from the filth with all thy heart, fear not; thy 
vileness will not cause the^Lord to stop his ear from hear- 
ing thee. The value of the blood of Christ, which is sprin- 
kled upon the mercy-seat, stops the course of justice, and 
opens a floodgate for the mercy of the Lord to be extended 
unto thee. 



FAITH IN PRAYER. 
Of old, beggars did use to carry their bowls in their 
laps when they went to a door for alms ; consequently, if 
their bowls were but little, they ofttirnes came off with a 
loss, though the charity of the giver was large. Art thou 
a beggar, a beggar at God's door ? be sure thou gettest a 
great bowl, for as thy bowl is, so will be thy mess. " Ac- 
cording to thy faith be it unto thee." 



WRESTLING PRAYER. 
A wrestling spirit of prayer is a demonstration of an 
Israel of God; this Jacob had, this he made use of, and by 
this he obtained the name of Israel. A wrestling spirit of 
prayer in straits, difficulties, and distresses— a wrestling 
spirit of prayer when alone, in private, in the night, when 
no eye seeth but God's, then to be at it, then to lay hold 
of God, then to wrestle, to hold fast, and not to give over 
until the blessing is obtained, is a sign of one that is an 
Israel of God. 



As this word, " Let Israel hope in the Lord," is some- 
times equivalent to a command, so it is expressed some- 
times also to show a grant, leave, or license to do a thing ; 



THE PUBLICAN'S PRAYER. 321 

such are these that follow: " Let us come boldly to the 
throne of grace ; let us draw near with a true heart ; let 
us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering." 
Understand the word thus, and it shows you how mud- 
dy, how dark those of Israel are, and how little they are 
acquainted with the goodness of their God who stand 
shrinking at his door like beggars, and dare not in a godly 
sort be bold with his mercy. Wherefore standest thou thus 
with thy ifs and thy O-buts, thou poor benighted Israel- 
ite ? Wherefore puttest thou thy hand in thy bosom, as 
being afraid to touch the hem of the garment of thy Lord ? 



THE PUBLICAN'S PRAYER. 
"God be merciful to me a sinner." Herein the pub- 
lican showeth wonderful wisdom. For, 

1. Ey this he thrusts himself under the shelter and 
blessing of the promise ; and I am sure it is better and 
safer to do so than to rely upon the best excellencies that 
this world can afford. Hosea 14 : 1-4. 

2. He takes the ready way to please God ; for God 
takes more delight in showing mercy than in any thing 
that we can do. Hosea 6:6; Matt. 9:13; 12:7. Yea, 
and that also is the man that pleaseth him, even he that 
hopes in his mercy. Psalm 147 : 1. The publican, there- 
fore, whatever the Pharisee might think, stood all this 
while upon sure ground, and had by far the start of him 
for heaven. Alas, his dull head could look no further than 
to the conceit of the pitiful beauty and splendor of his own 
righteousness ; nor durst he leave that to trust wholly to 
the mercy of God. But the publican comes out, though in 
his sins, yet like an awakened, enlightened, resolved man ; 
and first abases himself, then gives God the glory of his 
justice, and after that the glory of "his mercy, by saying, 
"God be merciful to me a sinner." And thus in the ears 
of the angels he did ring the changes of heaven. And, 

3. The publican, in his thus putting himself upon 

11* 



322 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

mercy, showeth that in his opinion there is more virtue in 
mercy to save, than there is in the law and sin to con- 
demn. And although this is not counted a great matter to 
do, while men are far from the law and while their con- 
science is asleep within them, yet when the law comes 
near and conscience is awake, whoso tries it will find it a 
laborious work. Cain could not do thus for his heart, no, 
nor soul ; nor Judas neither. This is another kind of thing 
than most men think it to be, or shall find it whenever they 
shall behold God's angry face, and when they shall hear 
the words of his law. 

However, our publican did it, and ventured his body, 
soul, and future condition for ever in this bottom, with 
other the saints and servants of God ; leaving the world to 
swim over the sea of God's wrath, if they will, in their 
weak and simple vessels of bulrushes, or to lean upon their 
cobweb-hold, when he shall arise to the judgment that he 
hath appointed. 



"He would not lift up his eyes to heaven." Why? 
Surely because shame had covered his face. Shame will 
make a man blush and hang his head like a bulrush. 
Shame for sin is a virtue, a comely thing, yea, a beauty- 
spot in the face of a sinner that cometh to God for mercy. 

Oh, to stand, or sit, or lie, or kneel, or walk before God 
in prayer, with blushing cheeks for sin, is one of the excel- 
lent sights that can be seen in the world. 



POSTURE IN PRAYER. 
There is no stinted order presented for our behaving 
ourselves in prayer, whether kneeling, or standing, or walk- 
ing, or lying, or sitting ; for all these postures have been 
used by the godly. Paul kneeled down and prayed ; Abra- 
ham and the publican stood and prayed ; David prayed as 
he walked ; Abraham prayed lying upon his face ; Moses 
prayed sitting. And indeed prayer, effectual fervent 



CLOSET-INIQUITY. 323 

prayer, may be and often is made unto God under all 
these circumstances. For God has not tied us up to any 
of them ; and he that shall tie himself or his people to 
any of these, doeth more than he hath warrant for from 
God. And let such take care of innovating ; it is the next 
way to make men hypocrites and dissemblers in those du- 
ties in which they should be sincere. Acts 20 : 36 ; 2 Sam. 
15 : 30, 31 ; Gen. 17 : 17, 18 ; Exod. 17 : 12. 



CLOSET-INIQUITY. 

Let those that name the name of Christ depart from 
the iniquity of their closet — when men have a closet to 
talk of, not to pray in ; a closet to look upon, not to bow 
before God in ; a closet to lay up gold in, but not to mourn 
in for the sins of the life ; a closet that, could it speak, 
would say, My owner is seldom here upon his knees before 
the God of heaven, seldom here humbling himself for the 
iniquity of his heart, or to thank God for the mercies of 
his life. 

Then also a man is guilty of closet-iniquity when, 
though he doth not utterly live in the neglect of duty, he 
formally, carnally, and without reverence and godly fear, 
performs it. Also when he asketh God for that which he 
cannot abide should be given him ; or when he prayeth 
for that in his closet, that he cannot abide in his house nor 
his life. 

It is a great thing to be a closet-Christian, and to hold 
it ; he must be a close- Christian that will be a closet- Chris- 
tian. When I say a close-Christian, I mean one that is so 
in the hidden part, and that also walks with God. Many 
there be that profess Christ, who do oftener frequent the 
coffee-house than their closet ; and that sooner in a morn- 
ing run to make bargains, than to pray unto God and 
begin the day with him. But for thee, who professest 
the name of Christ, do thou depart from all these things ; 
do thou make conscience of reading and practising ; do 



324 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thou follow after righteousness ; do thou make conscience 
of beginning the day with God. For he that begins it not 
with him, will hardly end it with him ; he that runs from 
God in the morning, will hardly find him at the close of the 
day ; nor will he that begins with the world and the vani- 
ties thereof in the first place, be very capable of walking 
with God all the day after. It is he that finds God in his 
closet, that will carry the savor of him into his house, his 
shop, and his more open conversation. When Moses had 
been with God in the mount his face shone, he brought of 
that glory into the camp. Exod. 34. 



FORMAL PRAYER. 

" Thy kingdom come ; thy will be done." Wouldst thou 
have the kingdom of God come indeed, and also his will 
to be done in earth as it is in heaven ? Nay, notwithstand- 
ing thou say est, " Thy kingdom come," yet would it not 
make thee ready to run mad, to hear the trumpet sound, to 
see the dead arise, and thyself just now to go and appear 
before God, to reckon for all the deeds thou hast done in the 
body ? Nay, are not the very thoughts of it altogether dis- 
pleasing to thee ? 

And if God's* will should be done on earth as it is in 
heaven, must it not be thy ruin ? There is never a rebel 
against God in heaven ; and if he should so deal on earth, 
must he not whirl thee down to hell ? And so of the rest 
of the petitions. 

Ah, how sadly would even these men look, and with 
what terror would they walk up and down the world, if 
they did but know the lying and blaspheming that pro- 
ceedeth out of their mouth, even in their most pretended 
sanctity ! 



THE PRAYERLESS. 
I tell thee who never prayest, the ravens shall rise up 
in judgment against thee ; for they will, according to their 



FALSE PROFESSION. 326 

kind, make signs and a noise for something to refresh them 
when they want it ; but thou hast not the heart to ask for 
heaven, though thou must eternally perish in hell if thou 
hast it not. 



XX. FALSE PROFESSION. 

As there are trees and herbs that are wholly right and 
noble, fit indeed for the vineyard, so there are also their 
semblance, but wild; not right, but ignoble. There is the 
grape, and the wild grape ; the vine, and the wild vine ; 
the rose, and the canker-rose ; flowers, and wild flowers ; 
the apple, and the wild apple, which we call the crab. 
Now, fruit from these wild things, however they may 
please the children to play with, yet the prudent and grave 
count them of little or no value. There are also in the 
world a generation of professors that, notwithstanding 
their profession, are wild by nature ; yea, such as were 
never cut out or off from the wild olive-tree, nor ever yet 
planted into the good olive-tree. Now these can bring 
forth nothing but wild olive-berries ; they cannot bring forth 
fruit unto God. Such are all those that have lightly taken 
up a profession, and crept into the vineyard without a new 
birth and the blessing of regeneration. 



The porch* is but the entrance of the house, whither 
many go that yet step not into the house, but make their 
retreat from thence ; but it is because they are non-resi- 
dents : they only come to see ; or else, if they pretended 
more, it was not from the heart. " They went out from 
us," said John, "but they were not of us ; for if they had 
been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us ; 

* This passage is from "The House of the Forest of Lebanon," 
which Bimyan regarded as a type of the church in her persecuted 
state. 



326 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

but they went out that it might be made manifest that they 
were not all of us." 

And forasmuch as this porch was fifty cubits long, men 
may take many a step straightforward therein, and be but 
in the porch yet ; even as we have seen men go as one 
would think till they are out of view, in the porch of this 
church in the wilderness ; but presently you have them 
without the door again. 

True, this porch was made of pillars ; and so to every 
one, at first entrance, it seemed the power of the place. 
The church in the wilderness also is so builded, that men 
may see that it is ordained for defence. Men also, at their 
first offer to step over the threshold there, with mouth pro- 
fess that they will dwell as soldiers there. But words are 
but wind : when they see the storm coming, they will take 
care to shift for themselves. This house or church in the 
wilderness must see to itself for all them. 

The church also in the wilderness, even in her porch 
or first entrance into it, is full of pillars — apostles, proph- 
ets, and martyrs of Jesus. There also hang up the shields 
that the old warriors have used, and there are plastered 
upon the walls the brave achievements which they have 
done. There also are such encouragements there for those 
that stand, that one would think none that came thither 
with pretence to serve there, would for very shame attempt 
to go back again ; and yet not to their credit be it spoken, 
they will forsake the place without blushing, yea, and 
plead for this their so doing. 



There is the wilfully ignorant professor, or he that is 
afraid to know more for fear of the cross. He is for pick- 
ing and choosing of truth, and loveth not to hazard his all 
for that worthy name by which he would be called. When 
he is at any time overset by arguments or awakenings of 
conscience, he uses to heal all by, "I was not brought up 
in this faith :" as if it were unlawful for Christians to know 



FALSE PROFESSION. 327 

more than hath been taught them at first conversion, 
There are many scriptures that lie against this man, as 
the mouths of great guns. 



There is another professor ; and he is for God and for 
Baal too : he can be any thing for any company ; he can 
throw stones with both hands ; his religion alters as fast as 
his company ; he is a frog of Egypt, and can live in the 
water and out of the water ; he can live in religious com- 
pany, and again as well out. Nothing that is disorderly 
comes amiss to him ; he can hold with the hare and run 
with the hound ; he carries fire in one hand and water in 
the other ; he is a very any thing but what he should be. 
This is also one of the many that " will seek to enter in, 
and will not be able." 



Christian and Hopeful, after their headstrong manner, 
(said Mr. By-ends,) conclude that it is their duty to rush on 
their journey all weathers; and I am for waiting for wind 
and tide. They are for hazarding all for God at a clap ; 
and I am for taking all advantages to secure my life and 
estate. They are for holding their notions, though all other 
men be against them ; but I am for religion in what and 
so far as the times and my safety will bear it. They are 
for religion when in rags and contempt ; but I am for him 
when he walks in golden slippers, in the sunshine, and 
with applause. 



Then I saw in my dream that Christian and Hopeful 
forsook him, and kept their distance before him; but one 
of them looking back, saw three men following Mr. By- 
ends ; and behold, as they came up with him he made 
them a very low congee, and they also gave him a com- 
pliment. The men's names were, Mr. Hold-the-world, 
Mr. Money-love, and Mr. Save-all ; men that Mr. By-ends 
had formerly been acquainted with, for in their minority 



326 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

they were schoolfellows, and were taught by one Mr. 
Gripe-man, a schoolmaster in Love-gain, which is a mar- 
ket-town in the county of Coveting, in the North. This 
schoolmaster taught them the art of getting, either by 
violence, cozenage, flattery, lying, or by putting on a guise 
of religion ; and these four gentlemen had attained much 
of the art of their master, so that they could each of them 
have kept such a school themselves. 



The Interpreter takes them out into his garden, and 
had them to a tree whose inside was all rotten and gone, 
and yet it grew and had leaves. Then said Mercy, "What 
means this?" " This tree," said he, " whose outside is 
fair and whose inside is rotten, is it which may be com- 
pared to them that are in the garden of God, who with 
their mouths speak high in behalf of God, but in deed will 
do nothing for him ; whose leaves are fair, but their heart 
good for nothing but to be tinder for the devil's tinder-box." 



This is the reason of that evil-favoredness that you see 
attending some men's lives and professions ; they have 
been corrupted, as Adam was, either by evil words or bad 
examples, even till the very face of their lives and profes- 
sions are disfigured as with the pox or canker. 



As the bramble said to the rest of the trees, so saith 
Christ to feigned thanksgivers, who pretend to give thanks 
for liberty, but rather use their liberty as an occasion for 
the flesh : If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then 
come and put your trust under my shadow ; submit to my 
law, and be governed by my testament. 



HYPOCRISY. 
Hypocrisy is one of the most abominable of iniquities. 
It is a sin that dares it with God. It is a sin that saith 
God is ignorant, or that he delighteth in iniquity. It is a 



HYPOCRISY. 329 

sin that flattereth, that dissembleth, that offereth to hold 
God, as it were, fair in hand, about that which is neither 
purposed nor intended. It is also a sin that puts a man 
upon studying and contriving to beguile and deceive his 
neighbor as to the bent and intent of the heart, and also 
as to the cause and end of actions. It is a sin that per- 
suadeth a man to make a show of civility, morality, or 
religion, as a cloak, a pretence, a guise to deceive withal. 
It will make a man preach for a place and praise, rather 
than to glorify God and save souls ; it will put a man upon 
talking, that he may be commended ; it will make a man, 
when he is at prayer in his closet, strive to be heard with- 
out door ; it will make a man ask for that he desireth not, 
and show zeal in duties when his heart is as cold, as 
senseless, and as much without savor as a clod ; it will 
make a man pray to be seen and heard of men. rather than 
to be heard of God ; it will make a man strive to weep 
when he repenteth not, and to pretend much friendship 
when he doth not love ; it will make a man pretend to ex- 
perience and sanctification when he has none, and to faith 
and sincerity when he knows not what they are. There 
is opposed to this sin, simplicity, innocence, and godly sin- 
cerity, without which three graces thou wilt be a hypo- 
crite. Believe that a hypocrite, with the cunning and 
shrouds for his hypocrisy, can go unseen no further than 
the grave ; nor can he longer natter himself with thoughts 
of life. 



A hypocrite and a false professor may go a great way ; 
they may pass through the first and second watch, to wit, 
may be approved by Christians and churches ; but what 
will they do when they come at the iron gate that leadeth 
into the city? 



As Luther says, "In the name of God" begins all 
mischief. For hypocrites have no other way to bring their 



RICHES OF BUNYAN. 



evils to maturity, but by using and mixing the name of 
God and religion therewith. Thus they become whited 
walls ; for by this white, the white of religion, the dirt of 
their actions is hid. 



Religion to most men is but a by-business, with which 
they use to fill up spare hours ; or as a stalking-horse, 
which is used to catch the game. 



The Pharisees did carry the bell and wear the garland 
for religion. 



A fawning dog and a wolf in sheep's clothing ; they 
differ a little in outward appearance, but they can both 
agree to worry Christ's lambs. 



CHRIST'S LOVE ABUSED. 
Take heed of abusing this love of Christ, Eph. 3 : 18, 19. 
This exhortation seems needless ; for love is such a thing 
as one would think none could find in their hearts to abuse. 
But for all that, I am of opinion that there is nothing that 
is more abused among professors at this day, than is this 
love of God. And what can such a one say for himself in 
the judgment, that shall be charged with the abuse of love ? 
Christians, deny yourselves, deny your lusts, deny the 
vanities of this present life, devote yourselves to God, be- 
come lovers of God, lovers of his ways, and a people zealous 
of good works ; then shall you show to one another and to 
all men that you have not received the grace of God in 
vain. And what a thing will it be to be turned off at last, 
as one that abused the love of Christ ; as one that pre- 
sumed upon his lusts, this world, and all manner of naugh- 
tiness, because the love of Christ to pardon sins was so 
great ! What an unthinking, what a disingenuous one wilt 
thou be counted at that day ; yea, thou wilt be found to 
be the man that made a prey of love, that made a stalk- 



PERVERSION OF THE TRUTH. 331 

ing-horse of love, that made of love a slave to sin, the 
devil, and the world ; and will not that be bad ? 



Objection. If it be so, then men need not care what 
they do ; they may live in sin, seeing Christ hath made 
satisfaction. 

Answer. If I were to point out one under the power 
of the devil, going hastily to hell, I would look no further 
for such a man than to him that would make such a use 
as this of the grace of God. What, because Christ is a 
Saviour, thou wilt be a sinner ; because his grace abounds, 
therefore thou wilt abound in sin ! wicked wretch, let 
me tell thee before I leave thee, as God's covenant with 
Christ for his children stands sure, immutable, and un- 
changeable, so also hath God taken such a course with 
thee, that unless he deny himself, it is impossible that thou 
shouldst go to heaven, dying in that condition. They 
tempted God, proved him, and turned his grace into lasciv- 
iousness ; so he sware in his wrath, They shall not enter 
into my rest. No, saith God, if Christ and heaven will not 
satisfy them, hell must devour them. God hath more 
places than one in which to put sinners : if they do not 
like heaven, hell must be their residence ; if they do not 
love Christ, they must dwell for ever with devils. 



PERVERSION OF THE TRUTH. 
Let those that name the name of Christ depart from 
the iniquity that cleave th to opinions. This is a sad age 
for that : let opinions in themselves be never so good, never 
so necessary ; never so innocent, yet there are spirits in the 
world that will entail iniquity to them, and will make the 
vanity so inseparable from the opinion, that it is almost 
impossible with some to take in the opinion and leave out 
the iniquity that by craft and subtlety of Satan is joined 
thereto. Nor is this a thing new and of yesterday ; it has 
been thus almost in all ages of the church of God, and 



332 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

that not only in things small and indifferent, but in things 
fundamental and most substantial. I need instance in none 
other for proof hereof, but the doctrine of faith and holiness. 
If faith be preached as that which is absolutely necessary 
to justification, then faith fantastical, and looseness and 
remissness in life, with some, are joined therewith. If 
holiness of life be preached as necessary to salvation, then 
faith is undervalued and set below its place, and works, as 
to justification with God, set up and made copartners with 
Christ's merits in the remission of sins. Thus iniquity 
joineth itself with the greatest and most substantial truths 
of the gospel ; and it is hard to receive any good opinion 
whatever, but iniquity will join itself thereto. 



A LATITUDINARIAK 

What you say about doubtful opinions, alterable modes, 
rites, and circumstances in religion, I know none so wedded 
thereto as yourselves. For you thus argue : "Whatsoever 
of such are commended by the custom of the place we live 
in, or commanded by superiors, or made by any circum- 
stance convenient to be done, our Christian liberty consists 
in this — that we have leave to do them." 

So that, do but call them things indifferent, things that 
are the customs of the place we live in, or made by any 
circumstance convenient, and a man may not doubt but he 
hath leave to do them, let him live at Rome or Constan- 
tinople, or amidst the greatest corruption of worship and 
government. There are therefore, doubtless, a third sort 
of fundamentals, by which you can wrestle with conviction 
of conscience, and stifle it — by which you can suit yourself 
for every fashion, mode, and way cf religion. Here you 
may hop from Presbyterianism to a prelatical mode ; and if 
time and chance should serve you, backwards and forwards 
again : yea, here you can make use of several consciences, 
one for this way now, another for that anon ; now putting 
out the light of this by a sophistical, delusive argument, 



PERVERSION OF THE TRUTH. 333 

then putting out the other by an argument that best suits 
the time. Yea, how oft is the candle of the wicked put 
out by such glorious learning as this. Nay, I doubt not 
but a man of your principles, were he put upon it, would 
not stick to count those you call gospel-positive precepts,^ 

* ; 'Latitudinarian." This term is used of a "remarkable clan of di- 
vines,'' who nourished in England about the middle and towards the 
close of the seventeenth century. Coleridge, in his Literary Remains, 

- that they were generally Platonists, and all of them admirers of 
Grotius. " They fell into the mistake of finding in the Greek philoso- 
phy many anticipations of the Christian faith, which in fact were but 
its echoes. The inference is as perilous as inevitable, namely, that even 
the mysteries of Christianity needed no revelation, having been previ- 
ously discovered and set forth by unaided reason/' They are thus char- 
acterized by Dr. Win. R, Williams, (' : Miscellanies," p. 196 :) "Against 
infidelity and popery they did good service in the cause of truth. Their 
dread of enthusiasm made them frigid, and their mastery of the ancient 
philosophy made them profound. Their doctrines were generally Ar- 
minian. Their notions of church power were less rigid than those of 
the rival party, and they were also more tolerant of difference in opin- 
ion. But in their preaching they laid the whole stress, well-nigh, of 
their efforts upon morals, to the neglect of doctrine • and in their the- 
ology, they attributed to human reason a strength and authority which 
gradually opened the way to the invasion of the gravest heresies. Of 
generally purer character than their opponents, they were also abler 
preachers. But while valuable as moral treatises, their sermons were 
most defective j for the peculiar doctrines and spirit of the gospel were 
evaporated." It cannot be doubted, that a class which included such 
men as Henry More. Cudworth, Tillotson, and Burnet, hardly deserves 
the wholesale reprobation hurled upon it by Bunyan. That some of 
them carried their liberalism to a dangerous extreme, and that all of 
them allowed too great latitude of sentiment in theology, and, by their 
philosophical speculations, obscured the simple glory of the gospel, is 
indeed true ; but some who bore this name were men of unquestion- 
able piety, as well as of eminent genius and scholarship. 

It is interesting to contrast the mixture of divine truth and human 
speculation, and the almost melancholy doubts, exhibited in the writ- 
ings of so excellent a man as Cudworth, with the strong and certain 
convictions, and the clear, well-defined views of Christian doctrine of 
John Bunyan, connected as they were in his case with the almost ex- 
clusive study of the word of God. We learn thereby not to despise 
learning and philosophy, but to beware of lowering the authority and 



334 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

of no value at all in the Christian religion ; for now, even 
now, you do not stick to say that even the duty of going 
to God by Christ is one of these, and such a one as, if ab- 
solutely considered in itself, is neither good nor evil. 

How, then, if God should cast you into Turkey, where 
Mahomet reigns as lord ? it is but reckoning that it is the 
religion and custom of the country, and that which is au- 
thorized by the power that is there ; wherefore, it is but 
sticking to your dictates of human nature, and remember- 
ing that coming to God by Christ is a thing of an indiffer- 
ent nature in itself, and then for peace' sake and to sleep 
in a whole skin, you may comply and do as your superior 
commands. "Why ? because in Turkey are your first sort 
of fundamentals all found ; there are men that have human 
nature and the law of morals written in their hearts , they 
have also the dictates thereof written within them, which 
teach them those you call the eternal laws of righteous- 
ness : wherefore you both would agree in your essential 
and immutable differences of good and evil, and differ only 
about these positive laws — indifferent things. Yea, and 
Mahomet also for the time, because by a custom it is made 
convenient, might be now accounted worshipful ; and the 
circumstances that attend his worship, especially those of 
them that clash not with the dictates of your human na- 
ture, might also be swallowed down. 

Behold you here then, good reader, a glorious Latitudi- 
narian, that can, as to religion, turn and twist like an eel 
on the hook ; or rather like the weathercock that stands on 
the steeple. 



CHANOING SOS. 
Dost thou profess the name of Christ, and dost thou 
pretend to be a man departing from iniquity ? Thou take 

sufficiency of divine revelation before human reason and speculation, 
and to acknowledge with humble gratitude the rich rewards of an. ear- 
nest and prayerful study of the English Scriptures. 



CHANGING SINS. 335 

heed thou dost not deceive thyself, by changing one bad 
way of sinning for another bad way of sinning. This was 
a trick that Israel played of old ; for when God's prophets 
followed them hard with demands of repentance and refor- 
mation, then they would " gad about to change their ways." 
Jer. 2 : 36. But behold, they would not change a bad way 
for a good, but one bad way for another ; hopping as the 
squirrel from bough to bough, but not willing to forsake the 
tree. Many times men change their darling sins, as some 
change their servants ; that which would serve for such a 
one this year, may not serve for the year ensuing. Hypoc- 
risy would do awhile ago, but now debauchery. Profane- 
ness would do when profaneness was in fashion, but now a 
deceitful profession. Take heed, professor, that thou dost 
not throw away thy old darling sin for a new one. Men's 
tempers alter. Youth is for pride and wantonness ; middle 
age for cunning and craft ; old age for the world and cov- 
etousness. Take heed, therefore, of deceit in this thing. 

Dost thou profess the name of Christ, and dost thou 
pretend to be a man departing from iniquity ? take heed 
lest thy departing from iniquity should be but for a time. 
Some do depart from iniquity, as persons in wrangling fits 
depart from one another, to wit, for a time ; but when the 
quarrel is over, by means of some intercessor they are 
reconciled again. Oh, Satan is the intercessor between the 
soul and sin ; and though the breach between these two 
may seem to be irreconcilable, yea, though the soul has 
sworn it will never more give countenance to so vile a 
thing as sin is, yet he can tell how to make up this differ- 
encc, and to fetch them back to their vomit again, who, 
one would have thought, had quite escaped his sins and 
been gone. 2 Pet. 2 : 18-22. Take heed, therefore, pro- 
fessor, for there is danger of this, and the height of danger 
lies in it ; and I think that Satan, to do this thing, makes 
use of those sins again to begin this rejoinder, which he 
findeth most suitable to the temper and constitution of the 



336 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sinner. These are, as I may call them, the master-sins ; 
they suit, they agree with the temper of the soul. These, 
as the little end of the wedge, enter with ease, and so 
make way for those that come after, with which Satan 
knows he can rend the soul in pieces. Wherefore, 

To help this, take heed of parleying with thy sins again, 
when once thou hast departed from them : sin has a smooth 
tongue ; if thou hearken to its enchanting language, ten 
thousand to one but thou art entangled. Take heed, 
therefore, of listening to the charms wherewith sin en- 
chanteth the soul. In this, be like the deaf adder ; stop 
thine ear, plug it up to sin, and let it only be open to hear 
the words of God. 



THE UNHOLY PROFESSOR. 

A professor that hath not forsaken his iniquity, is like 
one that comes out of the pest-house, among the whole, 
with his plague-sores running upon him. This is the man 
that hath the breath of a dragon ; he poisons the air round 
about him. This is the man that slays his children, his 
kinsmen, his friend, and himself. What shall I say ? A 
man that nameth the name of Christ, and that departeth 
not from iniquity, to whom may he be compared ? The 
Pharisees, for that they professed religion but walked not 
answerably thereto, unto what doth Christ compare them 
but to serpents and vipers ; what does he call them but 
hypocrites, whited walls, painted sepulchres, fools, and 
blind, and tells them that they made men more the chil- 
dren of hell than they were before? Matt. 23. Where- 
fore, such a one cannot go out of the world by himself ; for 
as he gave occasion of scandal when he was in the world, 
so is he the cause of the damnation of many. The apostle 
did use to weep when he spake of these professors, such an 
offence he knew they were and would be in the world. 
Acts 20:30 ; Phil. 3:18, 19. 

These are the chief of the engines of Satan : with these 



THE UNHOLY PROFESSOR. 337 

he worketh wonders. One Balaam, one Jeroboam, one 
Ahab, how many fish such bring to Satan's net. These 
are the tares that he strives to sow among the wheat, for 
he knows they are mischief to it. " Wherefore let every 
one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." 
Those that religiously name the name of Christ and 
do not depart from iniquity, how will they die ; and how 
will they look that Man in the face, unto the profession of 
whose name they have entailed an unrighteous conversa- 
tion ; or do they think that he doth not know what they 
have done, or that they may take him off with a few cries 
and wringing of hands, when he is on the throne to do 
judgment against transgressors. 0, it had been better they 
had not known, had not professed ; yea, better they had 
never been born. And as Christ says it had been good, so 
Peter says it had been better, Mark 14:12; 14:22; 
2 Pet. 2 : 20, 21 — good they had not been born, and better 
they had not known and made profession of the name of 
Christ. 



We read that the tail of the dragon, or that the dragon 
by his tail, did draw and cast down abundance of the stars 
of heaven to the earth. Rev. 12:4; Isa. 9 : 14, 15. The 
prophet that speaketh lies either by opinion or practice, he 
is the tail, the dragon's tail, the serpentine tail of the 
devil. Isa. 9:14, 15. And so in his order, every pro- 
fessor that by his iniquity draweth both himself and others 
down to hell, he is the tail. JSTor can Satan work such 
exploits by any, as he can by unrighteous professors. 
These he useth in his hand as the giant useth his club ; 
he, as it were, drives all before him with it. It is said of 
Behemoth, that "he moveth his tail like a cedar." Job 
40 : 17. Behemoth is a type of the devil ; but behold how 
he handleth his tail, even as if a man should swing about 
a cedar. This is spoken to show the hurtfulness of the tail, 
as it is also said in another place, Rev. 9:5, 10, 19. Bet- 
Riches of Bunyan. 1 5 



338 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

ter no professor than a wicked professor ; better openly 
profane, than a hypocritical namer of the name of Christ ; 
and less hurt shall such a one do to his own soul, to the 
poor ignorant world, to the name of Christ, and to the 
church of God. 



There is the sin of professors ; there is a profession that 
will stand with an unsanctified heart and life. The sin of 
such will overpoise the salvation of their souls, the sin-end 
being the heaviest end of the scale : I say, that being the 
heaviest end which hath sin in it, they tilt over, and so are, 
notwithstanding their glorious profession, drowned in per- 
dition and destruction. 



The iniquity that cleaveth to men that profess, if they 
cast it not away, but countenance it, will all prove nettles 
and briars to them ; and I will assure thee, yea, thou 
knowest, that nettles and thorns will sting and scratch but 
ill- favor edly. "I went," saith Solomon, "by the field of 
the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of under- 
standing ; and lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and 
nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall 
thereof was broken down." Prov. 24 : 30, 31. 

Suppose a man were, after work all day, to be turned 
into a bed of nettles at night ; or, after a man had been 
about such a business, should be rewarded with chastise- 
ments of briars and thorns ; this reward for work would be 
but little help, relief, or comfort to him. But this is the 
reward of a wicked man, of a wicked professor from God : 
nettles and thorns are to cover over the face of his vine- 
yard, his field, his profession, and that at the last of all ; 
for this covering over the face of his vineyard with nettles 
and thorns, is to show what fruit the slovenly, slothful, 
careless professor will reap out of his profession when 
reaping-time shall come. 

Nor can ho whose vineyard, whose profession is covered 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 339 

over with these nettles and thorns of iniquity, escape 
being afflicted with them in his conscience; for, as they 
cover the face of his vineyard through his sloth now, so 
will they cover the face of his conscience in the day of 
judgment. For profession and conscience cannot be sepa- 
rated long : if a man then shall make profession without 
conscience of God's honor in his conversation, his profes- 
sion and conscience will meet in the day of his visitation. 
Nor will he whose condition this shall be, be able to ward 
off the guilt and sting of a slothful and bad conversation 
from covering the face of his conscience, by retaining in 
his profession the name of Jesus Christ ; for naming and 
professing the name of Christ will, instead of salving such 
a conscience, put venom, sting, and keenness into those 
nettles and thorns that then shall be spread over the face 
of such consciences. I beseech you, consider this, namely, 
that the man that professeth the name of Christ and yet 
liveth a wicked life, is the greatest enemy that God has in 
the world, and. consequently one that God will most emi- 
nently set his face against. 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 

Barren-fig-tree, thou art not licensed by thy profession, 
nor by the Lord of the vineyard, to bear these clusters of 
Gomorrah ; neither shall the vineyard, nor thy being 
crowded amon^ the trees there, shelter thee from the sight 
of the eye of God. Many make religion their cloak and 
Christ their stalking-horse, and by that means cover them- 
selves and hide their own wickedness from men : but God 
seeth their hearts, hath his print upon the heels of their 
feet, and pondereth all their goings ; and at last, when 
their iniquity is found to be hateful, he will either smite 
them with hardness of heart and so leave them, or awaken 
them to bring forth fruit. Fruit he looks for, seeks, and 
expects, thou barren fig-tree. 

But what, come into the presence of God to sin ! 



340 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

What, come into the presence of God to hide thy sin ! 
Alas, man, the church is God's garden, and Christ Jesus 
is the great Apostle and High-priest of our profession. 
What, come into the house that is called by his name, into 
the place where his honor dwelleth, where his eyes and 
heart are continually — what, come there to sin, to hide 
thy sin, to cloak thy sin ! His plants are an orchard with 
pleasant fruits ; and every time he goeth into his garden, 
it is "to see the fruits of the valley," and to see if the 
vines nourish and if the pomegranates bud. 

Yea, he came seeking fruit on this fig-tree. The 
church is the place of God's delight, where he ever desires 
to be ; there he is night and day. He is there to seek for 
fruit, to seek for fruit of all and every tree in the garden. 
Wherefore assure thyself, fruitless one, that thy ways 
must needs be open before the eyes of the Lord. One 
black sheep is soon espied, although in company with 
many ; it is taken with the first cast of the eye ; its dif- 
ferent color still betrays it. I say, therefore, a church and 
a profession are not places where the workers of iniquity 
may hide themselves from God, that seeks for fruit : "My 
vineyard," saith God, " which is mine, is before me." 
Song 8:12; Psa. 26 : 8 ; 1 Kings, 9:3; Song 4 : 13-15. 



Barren soul, how many showers of grace, how many 
dews from heaven, hast thou enjoyed ! How many times 
have the silver streams of the city of God run gliding by 
thy roots, to cause thee to bring forth fruit ! These show- 
ers and streams, and the drops that hang upon thy boughs, 
will all be accounted for ; and will they not testify against 
thee, that thou oughtest of right to be burned ? Hear and 
tremble, thou barren professor ! 



When a man seeks for fruit on a tree, he goes round it 
and round it, now looking into this bough and then into 
that ; he peeps into the inmost boughs and the lowermost 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 341 

boughs, if perhaps fruit may be thereon. Barren fig-tree, 
God will look into all thy boughs. 



There is a man that hath a hundred trees in his vine- 
yard, and at the time of the season he walketh into his 
vineyard to see how the trees flourish ; and as he goes 
and views and pries and observes how they are hung with 
fruit, behold, he cometh to one where he flndeth naught 
but leaves. Now he makes a stand, looks upon it again 
and again ; he looks also here and there, above and be- 
low ; and if, after all this seeking, he finds nothing but 
leaves thereon, then he begins to cast in his mind how he 
may know this tree next year, what stands next it, or how 
far it is off the hedge ; but if there be nothing there that 
may be as a mark to know it by, then he takes his hook 
and giveth it a private mark, saying, Go thy way, fruit- 
less fig-tree, thou hast spent this season in vain. 

Yet doth he not cut it down — " I will try it another 
year; may be this was not a hitting season." Therefore 
he comes again next year to see if now it have fruit ; but 
as he found it before, so he finds it now, barren, barren, 
every year barren ; he looks again, but finds no fruit. Now 
he begins to have second thoughts. How, neither hit last 
year nor this ! Surely the barrenness is not in the season, 
sure the fault is in the tree ; however, I will spare it this 
year also, but will give it a second mark ; and, it may be, 
he toucheth it with a hot iron, because he begins to be 
angry. 

Well, at the third season he comes again for fruit, but 
the third year is like the first and second, no fruit yet ; it 
only cumbereth the ground. What now must be done with 
this fig-tree ? Why, the Lord will lop its boughs with ter- 
ror ; yea, the thickets of those professors with iron. I have 
waited, saith God, these three years ; I have missed of fruit 
these three years ; it hath been a cumber-ground these 
three years ; cut it down. Precept hath been upon pre- 



342 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

cept, and line upon line, one year after another, for these 
three years, but no fruit can be seen ; I find none : fetch 
out the axe. 



"Lord, let it alone this year also." Here is astonishing 
grace indeed ; astonishing grace, that the Lord Jesus should 
concern himself with a barren fig-tree ; that he should 
step in to stop the blow from a barren fig-tree ! True, he 
stopped the blow but for a time ; but why did he stop it 
at all ? Why did he not fetch out the axe ? Why did he 
not do execution ? Why did he not cut it down ? 

Barren fig-tree, it is well for thee that there is a Jesus 
at God's right hand, a Jesus of that largeness of pity to have 
compassion for a barren fig-tree ; else justice had never let 
thee alone to cumber the ground, as thou hast done. 

See the care, the love, the labor, and way which the 
Lord Jesus, the dresser of the vineyard, is fain to take with 
thee, if haply thou mayest be made fruitful. 



" Lord, let it alone this year." Lord, a little longer ; 
let us not lose a soul for want of means. I will try, I will 
see if I can make it fruitful ; I will not beg a long life, nor 
that it might still be barren, and so provoke thee. I beg 
for the sake of the soul, the immortal soul ; Lord, spare it 
one year only, one year longer, this year also ; if I do any 
good to it, it will be in little time. Thou shalt not be 
overwearied with waiting ; one year and then — 

Barren fig-tree, dost thou hear what a striving there 
is between the vinedresser and the husbandman for thy 
life ? 

"Cut it down," says one; "Lord, spare it," says the 
other. " It is a cumber-ground," saith the Father ; " One 
year longer," prays the Son : " let it alone this year also." 



" Till I shall dig about it and dung it." I doubt if it is 
not too much ground-bound. " The love of this world and 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 343 

the deceit fulness of riches" lie too close to the roots of the 
heart of this professor. The love of riches, the love of 
honors, the love of pleasures, are the thorns that choke 
the word ; how then can there be fruit brought forth to 
God? 

Barren fig-tree, see how the Lord Jesus by these words 
suggests the cause of thy fruitlessness of soul. The things 
of this world lie too close to thy heart ; the earth and its 
things have bound up thy roots ; thou art an earth-bound 
soul, thou art wrapped up in thick clay. " If any man 
love the world, the love of the Father is not in him ;" how 
then, can he be fruitful in the vineyard ? 

This kept Judas from the fruit of caring for the poor. 
This kept Demas from the fruit of self-denial. And this 
kept Ananias and Sapphira his wife from the goodly fruit 
of sincerity and truth. 1 John, 2:15, 16 ; John 12:6; 2 
Tim. 4:10; Acts 5 : 5-10 ; 1 Tim. 6 : 9, 10. 



i( And if it bear fruit, well." And if the outlay of all 
my labor doth make this fig-tree fruitful, I shall count my 
lime, my labor, and means, well bestowed upon it ; and 
thou also, my God, shalt be therewith much delighted ; 
for thou art gracious and merciful, and repentest thee of 
the evil which thou threatenest to bring upon a people. 

These words therefore inform us, that if a barren fig- 
tree, a barren professor, shall now at last bring forth fruit 
to God, it shall go well with that professor, it shall go well 
with that poor soul. His former barrenness, his former 
tempting of God, his abuse of God's patience and long- 
sufFering, his misspending year after year, shall now be all 
forgiven him. Yea, God *the Father and our Lord Jesus 
Christ will now pass by and forget all, and say, "Well 
done," at the last. 



" And if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down." 
There is nothing more exasperating to the mind of a man, 



344 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

than to find all his kindness and favor slighted ; neither is 
the Lord Jesus so provoked with any thing, as when sinners 
abuse his means of grace. If it he barren and fruitless 
under my gospel, if it turn my grace into wantonness, if, 
after digging and dunging and waiting, it yet remain un- 
fruitful, I will let thee cut it down. 

Gospel-means applied are the last remedy for a barren 
professor ; if the gospel, s if the grace of the gospel will not 
do, there can be nothing expected but, " Cut it down." 

" Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the proph- 
ets and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often 
would I have gathered thy children together, as a,, hen 
gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would 
not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate." Matt. 
23:37, 38. 

Yet it cannot be but that this Lord Jesus, who at first 
did put a stop to the execution of his Father's justice, be- 
cause he desired to try more means with the fig-tree — it 
cannot be but that a heart so full of compassion as his, 
should be touched to behold this professor must now be 
cut down. " And when he was come near, he beheld the 
city and wept over it, saying, If thou hadst known, even 
thou, at least in this thy day, the things that belong to thy 
peace ! but now they are hid from thine eyes." 

When Christ giveth thee over, there is no intercessor 
no mediator, no more sacrifice for sin ; all is gone but 
judgment, but the axe, but " a certain fearful looking for 
of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the 
adversaries." Heb. 10 : 26-28. 



The day of grace ends with some men before God 
takes them out of this world. Now, then, I would show 
you by some signs how you may know that the day of 
grace is ended, or near to ending with the barren professor. 
First sign. The day of grace is like to be past, when a 
professor hath withstood, abused, and worn out God's pa- 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 345 

tience : then he is in danger ; this is a provocation ; now 
God cries, "Cut it down." , 

There are some men that steal into a profession, nobody 
knows how, even as this fig-tree was brought into the vine- 
yard by other hands than God's ; and there they abide 
lifeless, graceless, careless, and without any good conscience 
to God at all. Perhaps they came in for the loaves, for a 
trade, for credit, for a blind ; or it may be, to stifle and 
choke the checks and grinding pangs of an awakened and 
disquieted conscience. Now, having obtained their pur- 
pose, like the sinners cf Zion, they are at ease and secure, 
saying, like Agag, Surely the bitterness of death is past : I 
am well ; I shall be saved and go to heaven. Thus in 
these vain conceits they spend a year, two, or three ; not 
remembering that at every season of grace, and at every 
opportunity of the gospel, the Lord comes seeking fruit. 

Well, sinner, well, barren fig-tree, this is but an evil 
beginning. God comes for fruit. What have I here ? saith 
God. What a fig-tree is this, that hath stood this year in 
my vineyard, and brought me forth no fruit ! I will cry 
unto him, Professor, barren fig-tree, be fruitful ; I look for 
fruit, I expect fruit, I must have fruit ; therefore bethink 
thyself. At these the professor pauses ; but these are 
words, not blows ; therefore off goes this consideration 
from the heart. 

When God comes the next year, he finds him still 
as he was, a barren, fruitless cumber-ground. And now 
again he complains, Here are two years gone, and no fruit 
appears ; well, I will defer mine anger for my name's 
sake. I will yet wait to be gracious. But this helps not, 
this hath not the least influence upon the barren fig-tree : 
Tush, saith he, here is no threatening ; God is merciful, 
he will defer his anger, he waits to be gracious ; I am not 
yet afraid. 0, how ungodly men, that are unawares crept 
into the vineyard, how do they turn the grace of our God 
into lasciviousness ! 

15* 



346 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Well, he comes the third year for fruit, as he did before, 
but still he finds but a barren fig-tree ; no fruit. Now he 
cries out again, thou dresser of my vineyard, come 
hither: here is a fig-tree hath stood these three years in 
my vineyard, and hath at every season disappointed my 
expectation ; for I have looked for fruit in vain. Cut it 
down ; my patience is worn out, I shall wait on this fig- 
tree no longer. 

And now he begins to shake the fig-tree with his 
threatenings : Fetch out the axe. Now the axe is death ; 
death therefore is called for. Death, come, smite me this 
fig-tree. And withal the Lord shakes this sinner, and 
whirls him upon a sick-bed, saying, Take him, death ; he 
hath abused my patience and forbearance, not remember- 
ing that it should have led him to repentance and to the 
fruits thereof: death, fetch away this fig-tree to the fire, 
fetch this barren professor to hell. At this, death comes 
with grim looks into the chamber, yea, and hell follows 
with him to the bedside, and both stare this professor in 
the face, yea, begin to lay hands upon him. One smites 
him with pains in his body, with headache, heartache, 
backache, shortness of breath, fainting qualms, trembling 
of joints, stopping at the chest, and almost all the symp- 
toms of a man past all recovery. Now, while death is 
thus tormenting the body, hell is busy with the mind and 
conscience, striking them with its pains, casting sparks of 
fire in thither, wounding with sorrows and fears of ever- 
lasting damnation the spirit of this poor creature. And 
now he begins to bethink himself, and to cry to God for 
mercy : Lord, spare me ; Lord, spare me. Nay, saith God, 
you have been a provocation to me these three years. How 
many times have you disappointed me ! How many sea- 
sons have you spent in vain ! How many sermons and 
other mercies did I of my patience afford you ; but to no 
purpose at all. Take him, death. good Lord, saith the 
sinner, spare me but this once ; raise me but this once. 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 347 

Indeed I have been a barren professor, and have stood to 
no purpose at all in thy vineyard ; but spare, spare me 
this one time, I beseech thee, and I will be better. Away, 
away, you will not ; I have tried you these three years al- 
ready ; you are naught : if I should recover you again, you 
would be as bad as you were before. (And all this talk is 
while death stands by.) The sinner cries again, Good 
Lord, try me this once ; let me get up again this once, and 
see if I do not mend. But will you promise me to mend ? 
Yes indeed, Lord, and vow it too. I will never be so bad 
again, I will be better. Well, saith Cfod, Death, let this 
professor alone for this time : I will try him a little longer ; 
he hath promised, he hath vowed, that he will amend his 
ways. It may be he will mind to keep his promises. 
Vows are solemn things ; it may be he may fear to break 
his vows. Arise from off thy bed. And now God lays 
down his axe. At this the poor creature is very thankful, 
praises God, and fawns upon him, shows as if he did it 
heartily, and calls to others to thank him too. He there- 
fore riseth, as one would think, to be a new creature in- 
deed. But by that he hath put on his clothes, is come 
down from his bed, and ventured into the yard or shop, and 
there sees how all things are gone to sixes and sevens, he 
begins to have second thoughts, and says to his folks, What 
have you all been doing ? How are all things out of or- 
der ! I am I cannot tell how much behindhand ; one may 
see if a man be but a little laid aside, that you have neither 
wisdom nor prudence to order things. And now, instead 
of seeking to spend the rest of his time for God, he doub- 
leth his diligence after this world. Alas, he saith, all must 
not be lost ; we must have provident care. And thus, 
quite forgetting the sorrows of death, the pains of hell, the 
promises and vows which he made to God to be better, be- 
cause judgment was not speedily executed, therefore the 
heart of this poor creature is fully set in him to do evil. 
These things proving ineffectual, God takes hold of his 



348 ftiGHES OF BUNYAN. 

axe again, sends death to a wife, to a child, to his cattle. 
I will blast him, cross him, disappoint him, cast him 
down ; and will set myself against him in all that he put- 
teth his hand unto. At this the poor barren professor cries 
out again, Lord, I have sinned ; spare me once more, I be- 
seech thee. take not away the desire of mine eyes ; spare 
my children, bless me in my labors, and I will mend and 
be better. No, saith God, you lied to me last time, I will 
trust you in this no longer ; and withal he tumbleth the 
wife, the child, the estate, into a grave. 

At this the poor creature is afflicted and distressed, 
rends his clothes, and begins to call the breaking of his 
promise and vows to mind ; he mourns and prays, and like 
Ahab, a while walks softly at the remembrance of the just- 
ness of the hand of God upon him. And now he renews 
his promises : Lord, try me this one time more, take off thy 
hand and see ; they go far that never turn. Well, God 
spareth him again, sets down his axe again: "Many times 
he did deliver them, but they provoked him with their 
counsels, and were brought low for their iniquities." Now 
they seem to be thankful again, and are as if they resolved 
to be godly indeed. Now they read, they pray, they go 
to meetings, and seem to be serious for a while ; but at 
last they forget. Their lusts prick them, suitable tempta- 
tions present themselves ; wherefore, they return to their 
own crooked ways again. 

Yet again, the Lord will not leave this barren professor, 
Luke 13 : 6-9, but will take up his axe again, and will put 
him under a more heart-searching ministry, a ministry that 
shall search him and turn him over and over — a ministry 
that shall meet with him, as Elijah met with Ahab, in all 
his acts of wickedness : and now the axe is laid to the roots 
of the tree. Besides, this ministry doth not only search 
the heart, but presenteth the sinner with the golden rays 
of the glorious gospel : now is Christ Jesus set forth evi- 
dently, now is grace displayed sweetly ; now, now are the 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 349 

promises broken, like boxes of ointment, to the perfuming 
of the whole room. But alas, there is yet no fruit on this 
fig-tree. While his heart is searched, he wrangles ; while 
the glorious grace of the gospel is unveiled, this professor 
wags and is wanton, gathers up some scraps thereof, 
tastes the good word of God and the power of the world 
to come, drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon him, 
but bringeth not forth fruit meet for him whose gospel it 
is ; takes no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of 
Israel with all his heart, but count eth that the glory of 
the gospel consisteth in talk and show, and that our obe- 
dience thereto is a matter of speculation — that good works 
lie in good words, and if men can finely talk, they may 
think they bravely please God. He thinks the kingdom of 
God consisteth only in word, not in power ; and thus proves 
ineffectual this fourth means also. 

Well, now the axe begins to be heaved higher, for now 
indeed God is ready to smite the sinner : yet before he will 
strike the stroke, he will try one way more at last ; and if 
that misseth, down goes the fig-tree. 

Now this last way is to labor and strive with this pro- 
fessor by his Spirit. Therefore the Spirit of the Lord is 
now come to him ; but not always to strive with man, 
Gen. 6:8; yet awhile he will strive with him, he will 
awaken, he will convince, he will call to remembrance 
former sins, former judgments, the breach of former vows 
and promises, the misspending of former days. He will 
also present persuasive arguments, encouraging promises, 
dreadful judgments, the shortness of time to repent in; and 
that there is hope if he come. He will show him the cer- 
tainty of death and of the judgment to come, yea, he will 
pull and strive with this sinner. But behold, the mischief 
now lies here ; here is laboring and striving on both sides. 
The Spirit convinces, the man turns a deaf ear to God ; the 
Spirit saith, Receive my instruction and live, but the man 
pulls away his shoulder ; the Spirit shows him whither he 



350 RICHES OF BUNYAiST. 

is going, but the man closeth his eyes against it; the 
Spirit offers violence, the man strives and resists : he has 
"done despite unto the Spirit of grace." Heb. 10 : 29. The 
Spirit parleyeth a second time and urgeth reasons of a new 
nature, but the sinner answereth, No ; I have loved stran- 
gers, and after them will I go. Amos 4 : 6-12. At this, 
God comes out of his holy-place, and is terrible ; now he 
sweareth in his wrath they shall never enter into his rest. 
Ezek. 34 : 13. I exercised towards you my patience, yet 
you have not turned unto me, saith the Lord. I smote you 
in your person, in your relations, in your estate, yet you 
have not returned unto me, saith the Lord. "Cut it 
down; why cumbereth it the ground ?" 

The second sign that such a professor is almost, if not 
quite past grace, is when God hath given him over, or lets 
him alone and suffers him to do any thing, and that with- 
out control ; helpeth him not either in works of holiness, 
or in straits and difficulties : " Ephraim is joined to idols ; 
let him alone." "Woe be to them when I depart from 
them." " I will laugh at their calamity ; I will mock 
when their fear cometh." 

Barren fig-tree, thou hast heretofore been digged about ; 
God's mattock has heretofore been at thy roots ; thou hast 
heretofore been striven with, convinced, awakened, made 
to taste and see, and cry, the blessedness ! Thou hast 
heretofore been met with under the word ; thy heart has 
melted, thy spirit has fallen, thy soul has trembled, and 
thou hast felt something of the power of the gospel. But 
thou hast sinned, thou hast provoked the eyes of his 
glory, thy iniquity is found to be hateful ; and now 
perhaps God has left thee, given thee up, and lets thee 
alone. 

Heretofore thou wast tender ; thy conscience startled 
at the temptation to wickedness, for thou wert taken off 
from the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of 
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, 2 Pet-. 2 : 20-22 : bul 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 351 

that very vomit that once thou wert turned from, now thou 
lappest up again. 

Seest thou a man that heretofore had the knowledge of 
God, and that had some awe of majesty upon him ; seest 
thou such a one sporting himself in his own deceivings, 
Rom. 1 : 30, 31, " turning the grace of God into lascivious- 
ness, and walking after his own ungodly lusts ? His judg- 
ment now of a long time lingereth not, and his damnation 
slumber eth not." 2 Pet. 2 : 13. 

Dost thou hear, barren professor ? It is astonishing to 
see how those who once seemed sons of the morning, and 
were making preparations for eternal life, now at last, for 
the rottenness of their hearts, by the just judgment of God 
are permitted, being past feeling, " to give themselves over 
unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greedi- 
ness." Eph 4 : 18, 19. A great number of such were in 
the first gospel days ; against whom Peter and Jude and 
John pronounce the just judgment of God. 2 Pet. 2 : 3-8 ; 
Jude 5-8. Barren fig-tree, dost thou hear ? These are be- 
yond all mercy ; these are beyond all promises ; these are be- 
yond all hopes of repentance ; these have no intercessor, nor 
any more share in the one sacrifice for sin. For these there 
remains nothing but a fearful looking for of judgment. 

These men go whither they will, do what they will ; 
they may range from opinion to opinion, from notion to 
notion, from sect to sect, but are steadfast nowhere : they 
are left to their own uncertainties ; they have not grace to 
establish their hearts ; and though some of them have 
boasted themselves of this liberty, yet Jude calls them 
wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of 
darkness for ever. They are left to be fugitives and vaga- 
bonds in the earth, to wander everywhere but to abide no- 
where, until they shall descend to their own place, with 
Cain and Judas, men of the same fate with themselves. 



Look thou certainly, fruitless professor, for an eternal 



352 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

disappointment in the day of God ; for it must be ; thy 
lamp will be out at the first sound the trump of God shall 
make in thine ears ; thou canst not hold up at the appear- 
ance of the Son of God in his glory ; his very looks will be 
to thy profession as a strong wind is to a blinking candle, 
and thou shalt be left only to smoke. 

Oh, the alteration that will befall a foolish virgin. She 
thought she was happy, and that she should have received 
happiness with those that were right at the heart ; but be- 
hold the contrary : her lamp is going out, she has now to 
seek for saving grace, when the time of grace is over ; her 
heaven she thought of has proved a hell, and her god has 
proved a devil. God hath cast her out of his presence, 
and closes the door upon her. She pleads her profession 
and the like, and she hath for her answer repulses from 
heaven. " So are the paths of all that forget God ; and the 
hypocrite's hope shall perish ; whose hope shall be cut off, 
and whose trust shall be the spider's web : though he lean 
upon his house, it shall not stand ; he shall hold it fast, but 
it shall not endure." 

Take heed, therefore; thy soul, heaven, and eternity 
lie at stake ; yea, they turn either to thee or from thee 
upon the hinge of thy faith, If it be right, all is thine ; if 
wrong, then all is lost, however thy hope and expectations 
are to the contrary. 



There are bare notions, there are common workings, 
and there is a work that is saving and that will do the soul 
good to eternity. 

1. There are bare notions, and they that have them are 
such unto whom the gospel comes in word only, 1 Thess. 
1:5; 1 Cor. 4:19, 20 ; such whose religion stands in 
word only, and is not attended with a power suitable : that 
is, there goes not with the word a power sufficient to sub- 
due and work over the heart to a cordial and gracious close 
with that word that comes to them. Yet such is the noise 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 353 

and sound of the word, that they are willing to become 
professors thereof; there is some kind of musicalness in it, 
especially when well handled and fingered by a skilful 
preacher. "And lo," saith God unto such preachers, when 
their auditory is made up of such kind of hearers, " lo, thou 
art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a 
pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument ; for 
they hear thy words, but they do them not." 

2. But then, besides these there is another sort, and 
they go further than these. For to them the word came, 
not in word only but also in power : though not in such a 
power as is sufficient, absolutely against all attempts what- 
soever, to bring the soul to glory. 

(1.) They attain light or illumination to see much of 
their state by nature. Heb. 6 ; 4. 

(2.) This light stands not in bare speculation, but lets 
fall upon the conscience convincing arguments to the bow- 
ing and humbling of the spirit. 1 Kings, 21 : 27-29. 

(3.) They submit to these convictions and reforms, and 
may for a time not only come out from them that live in 
error, but escape the pollutions of the world by the know- 
ledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. 2 Peter, 
2:18-20; Gal. 3:4; 4:20. 

(4.) Yea, so powerful will this dispensation be, that it 
will prevail with them to do and suffer many things for 
the vindication of the truth of that gospel which they pro- 
fess. For the word will be sweet unto them ; Christ, the 
gift of God, will be relished by them. Heb. 6 : 4, 5. The 
powers of the w T orld to come will be in them ; some work- 
ings of the Holy Ghost will be in them ; and joy, which 
is as oil to the wheels, will be with their souls. Luke 
8: 13. 

Thus is it with some professors, who yet cannot be said 
to depart from iniquity, because the things that now are 
upon them abide with them but awhile : " For awhile 
they believe ; they rejoice in the light for a season," and 



354 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

after that return to their old course, and are again entan- 
gled with their iniquities and overcome. 

Now the causes of this declension, or falling away again 
unto iniquity, are many. 

One is, that this work, this work of power which they 
have been made partakers of, has not been thorough enough 
upon all the powers of their souls. Their understandings, 
their judgments and consciences have been dealt with, but 
the power of God has not been upon their wills and minds 
and affections rightly to subdue them to the grace of the 
gospel. 

Therefore also such persons, upon the withdrawing of 
those influences that at present are mighty upon them, do 
forthwith forget both what they had and what work it 
made upon them. Straightway they forget what manner 
of men they were. It is said of Israel, " They sang his 
praises ; they soon forgat his word." So these ; they 
forget. 

They forget what light and what convictions they had. 

They forget what sorrow for sin they had. 

They forget what tastes of Christ and iiis word they 
had. 

They forget what joy and comfort they had. 

They forget how fair for heaven they were. 

And they forget how cleansed once they were. " They 
have forgotten that they were purged from their old sins." 
2 Pet. 1 : 9. 

Now, forgetfulness makes things that are past as noth- 
ings ; and if so, then it can lay no obligations upon the 
mind to engage it to delight in them ; no, not in thoughts 
of them, as if they were remembered by us. 

Forgetfulness is a very dangerous thing ; it makes 
preaching vain, profession vain, faith vain, and all to no 
purpose. 1 Cor. 15:1,2. Such profession is but a dream, 
and such professors but as dreamers; all vanishes in the 
morninor This made Paul so caution the Corinthians that 



THE FRUITLESS PROFESSOR. 355 

they should forget not the preaching ; and the writer to 
the Hebrews so earnestly call them, in their backsliding, 
back to the remembrance of former days, and to the recol- 
lecting what it was that then made them so willingly 
endure their great fight of affliction. 

Forgetfulness, I say, makes things nothings ; it makes 
us as if things had never been ; and so takes away from the 
soul one great means of stay, support, and encouragement. 
When choice David was dejected, the remembrance of the 
hill Hermon was his stay ; w T hen he was to go out against 
Goliath, the remembrance of the lion and the bear was his 
support ; so when those that have had the power of the 
things of God upon them, can think of this when they are 
withdrawn, it will, even the thinking of it, have some kind 
of operation upon the soul. And therefore you shall find, 
that the recovering of a backslider usually begins at the 
remembrance of former things. " Remember from whence 
thou art fallen, and repent and do thy first works." 

It is marvellous to see how some men are captivated 
with this forgetfulness. Those that sometimes have prayed, 
cried, groaned, and sighed for eternal life ; those that some- 
times thought no pains too much, no way too far, no haz- 
ards too great to run, for eternal life ; those that sometimes 
were captivated with the word, and with the comforts and 
joy thereof, and who, had it been possible, would have pull- 
ed out their eyes, and have given them to gospel ministers, 
so dear and sweet were the good tidings which they brought 
to such. I say, it is marvellous to see how such men are 
captivated w T ith the forgetfulness of this. They are as if 
they had never been those men ; they are as if they had had 
no such things, or as if they never had thought about them. 
Yea, they are strange, and carry it strangely to all those 
that still are under the power of that word, and of that 
mighty hand by which sometimes themselves were guided. 

Should one say to them, Art not thou the man that I 
once saw crying under a sermon, that I once heard cry out, 



oub RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

" What must I do to be saved ?" and that some time ago I 
heard speak well of the holy word of God ? how askew 
will they look upon one ; or if they will acknowledge that 
such things were with them once, they do it more like im- 
ages and rejected ghosts, than men. They look as if they 
were blasted, withered, cast out and dried to powder, and 
now fit for nothing but to be cast into the fire and burned. 
John 15. 



THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 

THE MAN IN THE IRON CAGE. 

"Now," said Christian, " let me go hence." " Nay, 
stay," said the Interpreter, " till I have showed thee a little 
more, and after that thou shalt go on thy way." So he 
took him by the hand again, and led him into a very dark 
room, where there sat a man in an iron cage. 

Now the man to look on, seemed very sad. He sat 
with his eyes looking down to the ground, his hands folded 
together, and he sighed as if he would break his heart. 
Then said Christian, " What means this ?" At which the 
Interpreter bid him talk with the man. 

Then said Christian to the man, "What art thou?" 
The man answered, " I am what I was not once." 

Christian. " What wert thou once ?" 

The man said, "I was once a fair and flourishing pro 
fessor, both in mine own eyes, and also in the eyes of 
others ; I once was, as I thought, fair for the celestial city, 
Luke 8 : 13, and had then even joy at the thoughts that I 
should get thither." 

Christian. "Well, but what art thou now?" 

Man. "I am now a man of despair, and am shut up in 
it as in this iron cage. I cannot get out : noio I can- 
not." 

Christian. " But how earnest thou in this condition ?" 

Man. " I left off to watch and be sober ; I laid the reins 
upon the neck of my lusts ; I sinned against the light of the 



THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 357 

word, and the goodness of God ; I have grieved the Spirit, 
and he is gone ; I tempted the devil, and he is come to me ; 
I have provoked God to anger, and he has left me ; I have 
so hardened my heart that I cannot repent." 

Then said Christian to the Interpreter, "But is there 
no hope for such a man as this?" "Ask him," said the 
Interpreter. 

Then said Christian, "Is there no hope hut you must 
be kept in the iron cage of despair?" 

Man. " No, none at all." 

Christian. "Why ? the Son of the Blessed is very pit- 
iful." 

Man. " I have crucified him to myself afresh ; I have 
despised his person, I have despised his righteousness, I 
have counted his "blood an unholy thing. I have done de- 
spite to the Spirit of grace, Luke 19 : 14; Heh. 6 : 4— 6 ; 
10 : 28, 29 ; therefore I have shut myself out of all the 
promises, and there now remains to me nothing but threat- 
enings, dreadful threatenings, fearful threatenings of cer- 
tain judgment and fiery indignation which shall devour me 
as an adversary." 

Christian. " For what did you bring yourself into this 
condition ?" 

Man. " For the lusts, pleasures, and profits of this 
world; in the enjoyment of which I did then promise my- 
self much delight ; but now every one of those things also 
bites me and gnaws me like a burning worm." 

Christian. "But canst thou not repent and turn?" 

Man. " God hath denied me repentance. His word 
gives me no encouragement to believe ; yea, himself hath 
shut me up in this iron cage : nor can all the men in the 
world let me out. eternity, eternity ! how shall I grap- 
ple with the misery that I must meet with in eternity ?" 

Then said the Interpreter to Christian, "Let this man's 
misery be remembered by thee, and be an everlasting cau- 
tion to thee." 



358 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

" Well," said Christian, " this is fearful ! God help me 
to watch and he sober, and to pray that I may shun the 
cause of this man's misery." 



We that religiously name the name of Christ should 
depart from iniquity, because the Spirit of the Father will 
else be grieved. Eph. 4 : 30. The countenancing of ini- 
quity, the not departing therefrom, will grieve the Spirit 
of God, by which you are sealed to the day of redemption ; 
and that is a sin of a higher nature than men commonly 
are aware of. He that grieveth the Spirit of God shall 
smart for it here, or in hell, or both. And that Spirit that 
sometimes did illuminate, teach, and instruct them, can 
keep silence, can cause darkness, can withdraw itself, and 
suffer the soul to sin more and more ; and this last is the 
very judgment of judgments. He that grieves the Spirit, 
quenches it ; and he that quenches it, vexes it ; and he 
that vexes it, sets it against himself, and tempts it to hasten 
destruction upon himself. 1 Thess. 5:19. 

Wherefore take heed, professors, I say, take heed, you 
that religiously name the name of Christ, that you meddle 
not with iniquity, that you tempt not the Spirit of the Lord 
to do such things against you ; whose beginnings are dread- 
ful, and whose end in working of judgments is unsearcha- 
ble. Isa. 63 : 10 ; Acts 5 : 9. 

A man knows not whither he is going, nor where he 
shall stop, that is but entering into temptation ; nor whether 
he shall ever turn back, or go out at the gap that is right 
before him. 

He that has begun to grieve the Holy Ghost, may be 
suffered to go on until he has sinned that sin which is called 
the sin against the Holy Ghost. And if God shall once give 
thee up to that, then thou art in the iron cage, out of which 
there is neither deliverance nor redemption. 



There is a sin called the sin against the Holy Ghost, 



THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 359 

from which there is no redemption, and this sin doth more 
than ordinarily befall professors ; for there are few, if any, 
that are not professors, that are at present capable of sin- 
ning this sin. They which " were once enlightened, and 
have tasted the heavenly gift, and were made partakers 
of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, 
and the powers of the world to come," Heb. 6:4, 5 — of this 
sort are they that commit this sin. Peter also describes 
them to be such, that sin the unpardonable sin: "For if 
after they have escaped the pollution of the world, through 
the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they 
are again entangled therein and overcome, the latter end 
is worse with them than the beginning." 2 Pet. 2:2. 

The other passage in the tenth of the Hebrews holdeth 
forth the same thing: "For if we sin wilfully, after we 
have received the knowledge of the truth, there remain- 
eth no more sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful looking 
for of judgment and fiery indignation that shall devour the 
adversaries." 

These, therefore, are the persons that are the prey for 
this sin. This sin feedeth upon professors, and they that 
are such do often fall into the mouth of this eater. 



The unpardonable sin, the sin against the Holy Ghost, 
is a sin of this nature : For a man after he hath made some 
profession of salvation to come alone by the blood of Jesus, 
together with some light and power of the same upon his 
spirit — I say, for him knowingly, wilfully, and despitefully 
to trample upon the blood of Christ shed on the cross, and 
to count it an unholy thing, or no better than the blood of 
another man ; and rather to venture his soul any other 
way, than to be saved by this precious blood. 

It is called the sin against the Holy Ghost, because such 
sin against the manifest light of the Spirit ; that is, they 
have been formerly enlightened into the nature of the gos- 
pel, and the merits of the man Christ, and his blood, right- 



360 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

eousness, intercession, etc., and also have professed and 
confessed the same, with some life and comfort in and 
through the profession of him ; yet now against all that 
light, they maliciously and with despite to all their former 
profession, turn their backs, and trample upon the same. 

This sin is immediately committed against the motions 
and convictions and light of that Holy Spirit of God, that 
makes it his business to hand forth and manifest the truth 
and reality of the merits and virtue of the Lord Jesus. 



To some men that have grievously sinned under a pro- 
fession of the gospel, God gives this token of his displeas- 
ure : they are denied the power of repentance ; their heart 
is bound, they cannot repent. It is impossible they should 
ever repent, should they live a thousand years. It is im- 
possible for those fall- aw ays to be renewed again unto re- 
pentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God 
afresh, and put him to open shame. Now, to have the 
heart so hardened, so judicially hardened, this is as a bar 
put in by the Lord God against the salvation of this sin- 
ner. This was the burden of Spira's complaint : "I can- 
not do it ; 0, now I cannot do it." 

This man sees what he has done, what should help him, 
and what wdll become of him ; yet he cannot repent. He 
pulled away his shoulder before, he shut his eyes before, 
and in that very posture God left him ; and so he stands to 
this very day. I have had a fancy that Lot's wife, when 
she was turned into a pillar of salt, stood yet looking over 
her shoulder, or else with her face towards Sodom ; as the 
judgment caught her, so it bound her, and left her for a 
monument of God's anger to after- generations. 



I have been the more plain and simple in my writing, 
because the sin against the Holy Ghost is in these days 
more common than formerly, and the way unto it more 
beautified with color and pretence of truth I may say of 



THE UNPARDONABLE SIN. 361 

the way to this sin, it is, as was once the way to Jerusa- 
lem, strewed with boughs and branches, and by some there 
is cried a kind of Hosanna to them that are treading these 
steps to hell. Oh, the plausible pretences, the golden 
names, the feigned holiness, the demure behavior mixed 
with damnable hypocrisy, that attend the persons that have 
forsaken the Lord Jesus, that have despised his person, 
trampled upon him, and " counted the blood of the covenant 
wherewith they were sanctified an unholy thing/' They 
have crucified him to themselves, and think that they can 
go to heaven without him, yea, pretend they love him, 
when they hate him ; pretend they have him, when they 
have cast him off; pretend they trust in him, when they 
bid defiance to his undertakings for the world. 



So they both went on, and Ignorance he came after. 
Now, when they had passed him a little way, they entered 
into a very dark lane, where they met a man whom seven 
devils had bound with seven strong cords, and were carry- 
ing him back to the door that they saw on the side of the 
hill. Matt, 12:45; Prov. 5:22. Now good Christian 
began to tremble, and so did Hopeful, his companion ; yet 
as the devils led away the man, Christian looked to see if 
he knew him ; and he thought it might be one Turn-away 
that dwelt in the town of Apostasy. But he did not per- 
fectly see his face ; for he did hang his head like a thief 
that is found. But being gone past, Hopeful looked after 
him, and espied on his back a paper with this inscription : 
"Wanton professor and damnable apostate." 



Riches of Bunyaa. 16 



362 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

XXI. THE CHURCH. 

FROM THE PREFACE TO THE c; HOLY CITY." 

Upon a certain First-day, I being together with my 
brethren in our prison-chamber, they expected that, accord- 
ing to our custom, something should be spoken out of the 
word for our mutual edification ; but at that time I felt my- 
self — it being my turn to speak — so empty, spiritless, and 
barren, that I thought I should not have been able to speak 
among them so much as five words of truth, with life and 
evidence : but at last it so fell out that providentially I cast 
my eye upon the 11th verse of the 21st chapter of this 
prophecy of Revelation ; upon which when I had consid- 
ered awhile, methought I perceived something of that Jas- 
per, in whose light you there find this holy city is said to 
come or descend : wherefore, having got in my eye some 
dim glimmerings thereof, and finding also in my heart a 
desire to see further thereinto, I, with a few groans, did car- 
ry my meditation to the Lord Jesus for a blessing. This 
he did forthwith grant, according to his grace ; and help- 
ing me to set before my brethren, we did all eat and were 
all refreshed ; and behold also, that while I was in the dis- 
tributing of it, it so increased in my hand that, of the frag- 
ments that we left after we had well dined, I gathered up 
this basketful. Methought the more I cast my eye upon 
the whole discourse, the more I saw lie in it. Wherefore, 
setting myself to a more narrow search, through frequent 
prayer to God — what first with doing, and then with undo- 
ing, and after that with doing again — I thus did finish it. 

But yet, notwithstanding all my labor and travail in 
this matter, I do not, neither can I, expect that every 
godly heart should in every thing see the truth and excel- 
lency of what is here discoursed ; neither would I have 
them imagine that I have so thoroughly viewed this holy 
city, but that much more than I do here crush out is yet 



THE CHURCH A LIGHT. 363 

left in the cluster. Alas, I shall only say thus : I have 
crushed out a little juice to sweeten their lips withal ; not 
doubting but in a little time more large measures of the ex- 
cellency of this city, and of its sweetness and glory, will by 
others be opened and unfolded, yea, if not by the servants 
of the Lord Jesus, yet by the Lord himself, who will have 
this city builded and set in its own place. 



CHURCH-FELLOWSHIP. 

It is the ordinance of God, that Christians should be 
often asserting the things of God to each other ; and that 
by their so doing, they should edify one another. 

The doctrine of the gospel is like the dew and the small 
rain, that distilleth upon the tender grass, wherewith it 
doth flourish and is kept green. 

Christians are like the several flowers in a garden, that 
have upon each of them the dew of heaven ; which being 
shaken with the wind, let fall their dew at each other's 
roots, whereby they are jointly nourished and become nour- 
ishes of one another. 

Church-fellowship, rightly managed, is the glory of all 
the world. No place, no community, no fellowship is 
adorned and bespangled with such beauties, as is a church 
rightly knit together to their Head, and lovingly serving one 
another. 

The church and a profession are the best of places for 
the upright ; but the worst in the world for the cumber- 
ground. 



THE CHURCH A LIGHT. 
The Holy Ghost is well pleased to bring in the shining 
virtues of the church, under the notion of a shining moon ; 
because, as the church herself is compared to the moon, so 
her virtues are as naturally compared to a shining light : 
as Christ saith, " Let your light so shine;" and again, "Let 
your loins be girded, and your lights burning." For indeed, 



364 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

while we are here, that church and congregation of the 
Lord doth most shine, and most send forth the golden rays 
and pleasant beams of Christianity, that is most in the ex- 
ercise of the aforementioned virtues. Take away the moon, 
and the night is doubtful ; or, though the moon be in the 
firmament, if she hath lost her light, the night is not there- 
by made more comfortable. And thus, I say, it is first 
with the world, where there is no church to shine, or where 
there is a church that doth not so shine that others may 
see and be lighted. 



SPIRITUAL CHARACTER OF THE CHURCH. 
She meddleth not with any man's matters but her own ; 
she comes all along by the king's highway; that is, only by 
the rules that her Lord hath prescribed for her in his testa- 
ment. The governors of this world need not at all fear 
a disturbance from her, or a diminution of aught they have. 
She will not meddle with their fields nor vineyards, neither 
will she drink of the water of their wells. Only let her 
goby the king's highway, and she will not turn to the right 
hand or to the left, until she has passed all their borders. 
It is a false report that the governors of the nations have 
received against the city, this new Jerusalem, if they be- 
lieve according to the tale that is told of her, that she is 
and has been of old a rebellious city, and destructive to 
kings, and a diminish er of their revenues. She is not for 
meddling with any thing that is theirs, from a thread even 
to a shoe-latchet. Her glory is spiritual and heavenly, and 
she is satisfied with what is her own. 'Tis true, the kings 
and nations of this world, shall one day bring their glory 
and honor to this city ; but yet not by outward force or com- 
pulsion : none shall constrain them but the love of Christ, 
and the beauty of this city. "The Gentiles shall come to 
thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising." Tlie 
light and beauty of this city, these only shall engage their 
hearts and overcome them. 



THE CHURCH IN AFFLICTION. 365 

Indeed, if any shall, out of mistrust or enmity against 
this city and her prosperity, bend themselves to disappoint 
the designs of the eternal God concerning her building and 
glory, then they must take what follows. Her God in the 
midst of her is mighty ; he will rest in his love, and re- 
joice over her with singing, and will undo all that afflict 
her. Wherefore, associate yourselves, ye people, and ye 
shall be broken in pieces ; for God is with us. 



WARNING TO THE PROFESSOR. 
He that sins himself out of the church, can find no 
good in the world ; and they that have sinned God out, can 
find no good in the church. A church that has sinned God 
away from it, is a sad lump indeed. You, therefore, that 
are in God's church, take heed of sinning yourselves out 
thence ; also take heed, that while you keep in, you sin not 
God away, for thenceforth no good is there. "Yea, woe 
unto them when I depart from them, saith the Lord." 



CHURCH. ORDER. 
It is hard to have all things according to rule in the 
day of the church's affliction, because of the weakness and 
fearfulness of some, and because possibly those who have 
most skill in that matter may for a time be laid up in 
chains. But when the church has rest and quietness, then 
as she praises God, so she conceives and brings forth gov- 
ernors and good government and rule among her mem- 
bers. David, a man of blood, could not build the house 
to the Lord, which peaceable Solomon, that man of rest, 
afterwards did. "When armies are engaged and hot in bat- 
tle, it is harder to keep them in rank and file than when 
they have rest and time for discipline. 



THE CHURCH IN AFFLICTION. 
When the church of God is afflicted, both heaven and 
hell have their hand therein ; but from a differing con- 



366 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sideration, and to a diverse end. From heaven it 
comes, that we may remember we have sinned, and that 
we may be made white and tried ; but from hell, that 
we might sin the more, and that we might despair and 
be damned. 



SATAN'S HOSTILITY TO THE CHURCH. 
Satan has tried many ways to be at amity with the 
church — not because he loves her holiness, but because he 
hates her welfare. And that he might bring about his en- 
terprise, he sometimes has allured her with the dainty deli- 
cacies of this world, the lusts of the flesh and of the eyes, 
and the pride of life. This being fruitless, he has attempted 
to entangle and bewitch her with his glorious appearance as 
an angel of light ; and to that end he has made his minis- 
ters as the ministers of righteousness, preaching up right- 
eousness, and contending for a divine and holy worship. 
But this failing also, he has taken in hand at length to 
fright her into friendship with him, by stirring up the hell- 
ish rage of tyrants to frighten and molest her ; by finding 
out strange inventions to torment and afflict her children ; 
by making many bloody examples of her own bowels be- 
fore her eyes, if by that means he might at last obtain his 
purpose. But behold, all has been in vain ; there can be 
no reconciliation. And why, but because God himself 
maintains the enmity? God hath put enmity between the 
devil and the woman ; between that old serpent called the 
devil and Sa/tan, and the holy and beloved and espoused 
wife of Christ. 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 

Gold is a metal so invincible and unconquerable, that 
no fire can consume it : it may burn it indeed, and melt it ; 
the dross indeed doth consume and give way to the power 
of the fire, but the gold remains and holds its ground, yea, 
it gets ground even of the furnace and fire itself; for the 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 367 

more it is burned and melted, the more it recovers its color, 
and the more it shakes off its dross and dishonor. 

Just thus it is with the people of God, and hath been 
so even from the beginning : the more men oppressed them, 
the more they grew. His church has been now for many 
hundred years in the king of Babylon's furnace ; all which 
time she hath most gloriously endured and withstood the 
heat ; and at last, when the fire hath done its worst against 
her, behold, there comfs out a city of gold. Wherefore, let 
her be bold to say, even before she comes out of the fire, 
M When I am tried, I shall come forth as gold." 



So long as the church endured hardship and affliction, 
she was greatly preserved from revolts and backslidings ; 
but after she had turned her face from the sun, and had 
found the plain of Shinar, Genesis 11, that is, the fleshly 
delights that the pleasures and profits and honors of this 
world afford, she, forgetting the word and order of God, was 
content to dwell in the land of Babel. 



As the sins of God's people brought them into captiv- 
ity, so their sins can hold them there ; yea, and when the 
time comes that grace must fetch them out, yet the oxen 
that draw this cart may stumble, and the way, through 
roughness, may shake it sorely. However, heaven rules 
and overrules : and by one means and another, as the cap- 
tivity of Israel did seem to linger, so it came out at the 
time appointed, in the way that best pleased God, that 
most profited them, and that most confounded those that 
were their implacable enemies. This therefore should in- 
struct those that yet dwell where^the "woman" sitteth, to 
quietness and patience. 

To quietness ; for God rules and has the disposal of 
things. Besides, it is a kind of arraigning of his wisdom, 
to be discontent at that which at present is upon the wheel. 
Above all, it displeases him that any should seek, or go 



368 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

about to revenge their own injuries, or to work their own 
deliverances ; for that is the work of God : nor is he weak, 
nor has he missed the opportunity ; nor does he sleep, but 
waketh, and waiteth to be gracious. 

This also should teach them to be patient, and put them 
upon bearing what at present they may undergo, patiently. 
Let them wait upon God ; patiently let them wait upon 
men, and patiently let them bear the fruits of their own 
transgressions ; which though they should be none other 
but a deferring of the mercy wished for, is enough to try, 
and crack, and break their patience, if a continual supply 
and a daily increase thereof be not given by the God of 
heaven. 

And before I conclude this, let me add one word more, 
to wit, to exhort them to look that they may see what God 
at present may be doing among the Babylonians. 

When God had his people into Babylon of old, he pre- 
sented them with such varieties there as he never showed 
them in their own country. And is there nothing now to 
be seen by them that are not yet delivered from that op- 
pression, that may give them occasion to stay themselves 
and wonder ? What, is preservation nothing ? What, is 
baffling and befooling the enemies of God's church noth- 
ing? In the Maryan # days here at home, there were such 

^ Upon the accession of Mary to the throne of England, the san- 
guinary laws against heretics were revived, and those shocking scenes 
of cruelty followed which have fixed upon this princess the epithet 
of Eloody Queen Mary. Her gloomy bigotry caused that two hundred 
and seventy-seven persons should be committed to the flames, includ- 
ing prelates, private clergymen, laymen of all ranks, women, and even 
children. 

Among the number were archbishop Cianmer, bishops Ridley, Lati- 
mer, and Hooper, John Rogers, John Bradford, and John Philpot. 

Bishops Latimer and Ilidley were burnt together. When they came 
to the stake, Dr. Ridley embraced Latimer fervently, and bade him be 
of good heart ; he then knelt by the stake, and after earnestly praying 
together, they had a short private conversation. A lighted fagot was 
laid at Dr. Ridley's feet, which caused the other to say, "Be of good 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 369 

sweet songs sung in the fire, such sweet notes answering 
them from prison, and such providences, like coals of burn- 
ing fire, still dropping here and there upon the heads of 
those that hated God, that it might, and doubtless did, make 
those that did wisely consider of God's doings, think God 
was yet near in behalf of his despised and afflicted people. 



Deep things are seen by them that are upon the waters. 
" They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business 
in great waters, these see the works of the Lord and his 
wonders in the deep." Indeed it oft falls out that the 
church sees more of God in affliction, than when she is at 
rest and ease ; when she is tumbled to and fro with waters, 
then she sees the works of God and his wonders in the 
deep. And this makes persecution so pleasant a thing ; 
this makes "the ark go upon the face of the waters." She 
sees more in this her state, than in all the treasures of 
Egypt. 



Nothing is more natural to the church, while in a wil* 
derness condition, than such cups and draughts as the cup 
of the Lord's fury, the cup of trembling, the cup of aston- 
ishment. 

Hence she is said to be clothed in sackcloth, to mourn, 
to weep, to cry out, and to be in pain as a woman in trav- 
ail. Since the church in the wilderness has been so per- 
secuted, so distressed, so oppressed, and made the seat of 
so much war, so much blood, and so many murders of her 
children within her, can it be imagined that she drank of 

cheer, Ridley, and play the man. "We shall this day, by God's grace, 
light up such a candle in England, as I trust will never be put out." 
When Dr. Bidley saw the flame approaching him, he exclaimed, "Into 
thy hands, Lord, I commend my spirit." Latimer ceased not to 
say, "0 Father of heaven, receive my soul." 

Sanders, another martyr, was offered a pardon; but he rejected it, 
and embraced the stake, saying, "Welcome the cross of Christ! wel* 
come, everlasting life !" Fox's Book of Martyrs and Hume's Hist. Eng 

16* 



370 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

more of these cups ? Yes, yes, she has drunk the red wine 
at the Lord's hand, even the cup of blood, of fury, of trem- 
bling, and of astonishment ; witness her own cries, sighs, 
tears, and tremblings, with the cries of the widows, chil- 
dren, and orphans within her. 

But all these cups are of pure gold. They are of G od's 
ordaining, appointing, filling ; and also sanctified by him 
for good to those of his that drink them. Hence Moses 
chose rather to drink a brimmer of these, than to enjoy 
the pleasures of sin for a season. 

The sourness, bitterness, and wormwood of them, there- 
fore, is only to the flesh, that loveth neither God, nor 
Christ, nor grace. The afflictions, therefore, that the 
church in the wilderness hath met with, these cups of 
gold, are of more worth than are all the treasures of 
Egypt ; they are needful and profitable, and praise worthy 
also, and tend to the augmenting of our glory when the 
next world shall come. 

Besides, they are signs, tokens, and golden-marks of 
love, and jewels that set off the beauty of the church in 
the sight of God the more. They are also a means by 
which men are proved to be sound, honest, faithful, and 
true lovers of God ; to be those whose graces are not coun- 
terfeit, feigned, or unsound, but true, and such as will be 
found to praise and honor and glory at the appearing of 
Jesus Christ. 

And this has been the cause that the men of our church 
in the wilderness have gloried in tribulation, taking pleas- 
ure in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, and in 
distresses, for Christ's sake. Yea, this is the reason why 
they have bade one another rejoice, when they fell into 
divers temptations, saying, "Happy is the man that en- 
dureth temptations ;" and, " Behold, we count them happy 
that endure." And again, "If ye be reproached for the 
name of Christ, happy are ye." 

These, therefore, are vessels of pure gold, though they 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 371 

contain such bitter draughts, at which we make so many 
wry faces before we can get them down. 

Do you think that a Christian, having even this cup in 
his hand to drink, would change it for a draught of that 
which is in the hand of the woman that sits on the back 
of the scarlet-colored beast ? No, verily ; for he knows 
that her sweet is poison ; and that his bitter is to purge his 
soul, body, life, and religion, of death. 

God sends his love-tokens to his church two ways ; 
sometimes by her friends, sometimes by her enemies. When 
they come by the hand of a friend, as by a minister, a 
brother, or by the Holy Ghost, then they come smoothly, 
sweetly, and are taken, and go down like honey. But 
when these love-tokens come to them by the hand of an 
enemy, then they are handed to them roughly. Pharaoh 
handed love-tokens to them roughly ; the king of Babylon 
handed these love-tokens to them roughly. They bring 
them of malice ; God sends them of love. They bring 
them and give them to us, hoping they will be our death ; 
they give them therefore with many a foul curse ; but God 
blesses them still. 

Nor is this cup so bitter but that our Lord himself 
drank deep of it, before it was handed to his church. He 
did, as loving mothers do, drink thereof himself, to show 
us it is not poison, also to encourage us to drink it for his 
sake, and for our endless health. Therefore the cup is 
called Christ's cup : "Are ye able to drink of the cup that 
I drink of ? Ye shall indeed drink of my cup." Here you 
see they are joined in a communion in this cup of afflic- 
tion. 

But these are not all the cups that belong to the church 
in the wilderness. There is also a cup, out of which, at 
times, is drunk what is exceeding sweet. It is called the 
cup of consolation, the cup of salvation ; a cup in which 
God himself is, as David said, " The Lord is the portion of 
my cup." 



372 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

This cup, they that are in the church in the wilderness 
have usually for an after-draught to that bitter one that 
went before. Thus, as tender mothers give their children 
plums or sugar to sweeten their palate after they have 
drunk a bitter potion, so God gives his children the cups of 
salvation and consolation after they have suffered awhile : 
"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our con- 
solation aboundeth by Christ. " 

Some of these cups are filled until they run over ; as 
David said his did, when the valley of the shadow of death 
was before him : " Thou preparest a table before me in the 
presence of mine enemies ; thou anointest my head with 
oil ; my cup runneth over." 

This is that which the apostle calls "exceeding" — that 
which is beyond measure. " I am," says he, "filled with 
comfort ; I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation." 

Now he has one answering the other : " Thou hast 
made summer and winter ; thou hast made the warm 
beams of thy sun answerable to the cold of the dark night." 
This may yet be signified by the building of this house, 
this type of the church in the wilderness, in so pleasant a 
place as the forest of Lebanon was. Lebanon ! Lebanon 
was one of the sweetest places in all the land of Canaan. 
Therefore we read of the fruit of Lebanon, of the streams 
from Lebanon ; the scent, the smell, the glory of Lebanon ; 
and also of the wine and flowers of Lebanon. 

Lebanon ! That was one thing that wrought with 
Moses to desire that he might go over Jordan, that he 
might see that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. The glory 
and excellent beauty of the church Christ also setteth 
forth by comparing her to Lebanon : " Thy lips, my 
spouse, drop as a honeycomb ; honey and milk are under 
thy tongue, and the smell of thy garments is like the smell 
of Lebanon." 



I know there are extravagant opinions in the world 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 373 

about the kingdom of Christ, as if it consisted in temporal 
glory in part ; and as if he would take it to him by carnal 
weapons, and so maintain it in its greatness and grandeur. 
But I confess myself an alien to these notions, and believe 
and profess quite the contrary, and look for the coming of 
Christ to judgment personally ; and betwixt this and that, 
for his coming in Spirit and in the power of his word, to 
destroy antichrist, to inform kings, and so to give quietness 
to his church on earth : which shall assuredly be accom- 
plished when the reign of the beast, the false prophet, and 
the man of sin is out. 

Let this teach men not to think that the church is 
cursed of God, because she is put in a wilderness state. 
Alas, that is but to train her up in a way of solitariness, to 
make her Canaan the more welcome to her. Hest is sweet 
to a laboring man. 

Yea, this condition is the first step to heaven ; yea, it is 
a preparation to that kingdom. God's ways are not as 
man's : " I have chosen thee," saith he, " in the furnace of 
affliction." When Israel came out of Egypt, they were led 
of God into the wilderness. But why? That he might 
have them to a land that he had espied for them, that he 
might bring them to a city of habitation. 

The world know not the way of the Lord, nor the judg- 
ment of our God. Do you think that saints that dwell in 
the world, and that have more of the mind of God than 
the world, could so rejoice in God, in the cross, in tribu- 
lations and distresses, were they not assured that through 
many tribulations is the very road to heaven ? 

Let this then encourage the saints to hope, and to 
rejoice in hope of the glory of God, notwithstanding pres- 
ent tribulations. This is our seed-time, our winter : afflic- 
tions are to try us of what mettle we are made ; yea, and to 
shake off worm-eaten fruit, and such as are rotten at core. 

Troubles for Christ's sake are but like the prick of an 
awl in the tip of the ear, in order to hang a jewel there. 



374 HICHES OF BUNYAN.. 

Let this also put the saints upon patience. When we 
know that a trial will have an end, we are encouraged to 
exercise patience. I have a bad master, but I have only a 
year to serve under him, and that makes me serve him 
with patience. I have but a mile to go in this dirty way, 
and then I shall have my path pleasant and green, and 
this makes me tread the dirty way with patience. 

I am now in my rags ; but by that a quarter of a year 
is come and gone, two hundred^ a year comes into my 
hand ; wherefore I will wait and exercise patience. Thus 
might I multiply comparisons. 

Be patient, then, my brethren. But how long ? " To 
the coming of the Lord." But when will that be ? " The 
coming of the Lord draweth nigh." 



How unseen the strength of the church under persecu- 
tion is of all that are without her. Alas, they think that 
she will be run down with a push ; or, as they said, " What 
do these feeble Jews ? Will they fortify themselves ? will 
they sacrifice ? will they make an end in a day ? will they 
revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish which are 
burnt ? Alas, if a fox go up, he will even break down 
their stone wall." 

But do you think these men saw the strength of the 
Jews ? No, no ; their pillars were within, and so were 
shadowed from their eyes. David himself could not tell 
what judgment to make of the way of the world against 
the people of God, until he went into the sanctuary of God. 

How then can the world judge of the condition of the 
saints ? Alas, had they known the church's strength, 
surely they would not have so furiously assaulted her. 
But what have they got by all they have done, either 
against the Head or body of the church ? 

She has yet being in the world, and will have, shall 

have, though all the nations on earth should gather them- 

* That is, pounds : a large income in the England of Bunyan's day. 



SECURITY OF THE CHURCH. 375 

selves together against her. Nor is it the cutting off of many 
that will make her cease to flourish. Alas, were she not 
sometimes pruned and trimmed, her boughs would stand 
too thick. Those therefore that are taken away with 
God's pruning-hooks, are removed that the under branches 
may grow the better. 



No man needs be afraid to let Jesus Christ be chief 
in the world : he envies nobody ; he designs the hurt of 
none : his kingdom is not of this world, nor doth he covet 
temporal matters : let but his wife, his church, alone, to 
enjoy her purchased privileges, and all shall be well ; 
which privileges of hers, since they are soul-concerns, 
make no infringement upon any man's liberties. Let but 
faith and holiness walk the streets without control, and 
you may be as happy as the world can make you. I speak 
now to them that contend with him. 

But if seasonable counsel will not go down, if hardness 
of heart and blindness of mind and so perishing from the 
way shall overtake you, it is but what you of old have 
been cautioned of: "Be wise now, therefore, ye kings; 
be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with 
fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be 
angry, and ye perish from the way when his wrath is kin- 
dled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust 
in him." 



The very name of Jesus is the very tower of the Chris- 
tian church, and that by which she frights the world, not 
designedly, but through their misunderstanding ; for neither 
she nor her Jesus is for doing them any hurt. However, 
this is that which renders her yet, in their eye, terrible as 
an arjny with banners. 



Always when antichrist made his inroads upon the 
church in the wilderness, to slay, to cut off, and to kill, 



376 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

yet some of the pillars stood ; they were not all burnt in the 
fire, nor cut down. They said indeed, " Come, let us cut 
them off from being a nation, that the name of Israel may 
be no more in remembrance." But what then? There is 
a difference betwixt saying and doing ; the bush was not 
therefore consumed because it was set on fire ; the church 
shall not be consumed, although she be afflicted. 

And the reason is, because God has his reserve : there- 
fore if Abel falls by the hand of Cain, Seth is put in his 
place ; if Moses is taken away, Joshua shall succeed him ; 
and if the devil break the neck of Judas, Matthias is at 
hand to take his office. God has a succession of pillars in 
his house ; he has to himself a reserve. 



They therefore brought out Faithful, to do with him 
according to their law ; and first they scourged him, then 
they buffeted him, then they lanced his flesh with knives ; 
after they had stoned him with stones, they pricked him 
with their swords ; and last of all, they burned him to 
ashes at the stake. Thus came Faithful to his end. Now 
I saw in my dream that Christian went not forth alone, 
for there was one whose name was Hopeful — being so 
made by the beholding of Christian and Faithful in their 
words and behavior in their sufferings at the fair — who 
joined himself unto him ; and entering into a brotherly 
covenant, told him that he would be his companion. 

Thus one died to bear* testimony to the truth, and 
another rises out of his ashes, to be a companion with 
Christian in his pilgrimage. 



"And she bare a son, and caDed his name Seth; for 
God, saith she, hath appointed me another seed instead of 
Abel, whom Cain slew." Gen. 4. When Seth cgmes, 
then the ground is made good again ; then a living saint is 
found to stand, and maintain that truth which but now his 
brother bled for. 



FUTURE GLORY OF THE CHURCH. 377 

THE FUTURE GLORY OF THE CHURCH. 
Thy children shall all be holy or righteous, and " great 
shall be the peace of thy children ; and the nations of them 
that are saved shall walk in the light of it." Surely the 
Holy Ghost would never have spoken such a word as this 
if he had not intended to show us that at the day of the 
setting up of this Jerusalem, a great harvest of sinners shall 
be gathered by the grace of the gospel. But the truth is, 
the Scriptures go with open arms towards the latter end of 
the world, even as if they would grasp and compass about 
almost all people then upon the face of the whole earth 
with the grace and mercy of God : " The earth shall be 
filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the 
waters cover the sea." 



Never was fair weather after foul, nor warm weather 
after cold, nor a sweet and beautiful spring after a heavy 
and nipping and terrible winter, so comfortable, sweet, 
and desirable and welcome to the poor birds and beasts of 
the field, as this day will be to the church of God. Dark- 
ness ! it was the plague of Egypt ; it is an empty, forlorn, 
desolate, solitary, and discomforting state. Wherefore 
light, even the illuminating grace of God, especially in the 
measure that it shall be communicated unto us at that day, 
it must needs be precious. In light there is warmth and 
pleasure. It is by the light of the sun that the whole uni- 
verse appears unto us distinctly, and it is by the heat 
thereof that every thing groweth and flourisheth ; all 
which will now be gloriously and spiritually answered in 
this holy and new Jerusalem. how clearly will all the 
spiders and dragons and owls and foul spirits of antichrist, 
at that day, be discovered by the light hereof. Now also 
will all the pretty and little birds in the Lord's field, most 
sweetly send forth their pleasant notes, and all the flowers 
and herbs in his garden spring. Then will it be said to 
the church by her husband and Saviour, " Rise up, my love, 



378 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

my fair one, and come away ; for lo, the winter is past, the 
rain is over and gone, the flowers appear on the earth, the 
time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the 
turtle is heard in our land ; the fig-tree putteth forth her 
green figs, and the vine with her tender grapes give a good 
smell." You know how pleasant this is, even to be ful- 
filled in the letter of it, not only to birds and beasts, but to 
men ; especially it is pleasant to such men as have for 
several years been held in the chains of affliction. It must 
needs therefore be most pleasant and desirable to the afflict- 
ed church of Christ, who hath lain now in the dungeon of 
antichrist for above a thousand years. But, Lord, how 
will this lady, when she gets her liberty and when she is 
returned to her own city, how will she then take pleasure 
in the warmth and spangling beams of thy shining grace, 
and solace herself with thee in the garden, among the 
nuts and pomegranates, among the lilies and flowers, and 
all the chief spices ! 



" And in the midst of the street of it, and on either side 
of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve 
manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month ; and 
the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. " 

This tree of life is the Lord Jesus Christ ; and that he 
is here called a tree, is to show how fruitful and exceeding 
advantageous he in all his benefits will be to the inhab- 
itants of this city. This is the tree under whose branches 
the fowls of heaven shall now most safely lodge, and find 
relief from the hot and fainting beams of the persecuting 
sun of this world. 

In that he saith this city hath a tree of life in it, he 
alludes to the garden of Eden, the pleasant paradise that 
God began the' world withal ; whereby he signifies, that as 
the world began with a paradise, so also it shall end with 
a paradise, when sin and Satan have done their worst. 
This new Jerusalem shall be the wind-up of the world ; 



FUTURE GLORY OF THE CHURCH. 379 

and in it shall stand the tree of life, as there stood one 
in the goodly garden which was the beginning thereof. 

Now this tree of life being in the midst of this city, it 
signifies that the inhabitants of it shall be sweetly shad- 
owed, refreshed, and defended with its coolness, and also 
sweetly nourished and comforted with its dainties. " As 
the apple-tree is among the trees of the wood, so is my Be- 
loved among the sons. I sat under his shadow with great 
delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste." Indeed the 
shadow of this tree of life, as always it is refreshing to the 
tempted and weary, so now it will be far more : " They 
that dwell under his shadow shall return ; they shall re- 
vive as the corn and grow as the vine, and the scent thereof 
shall be as the wine of Lebanon." His shadow will make 
us return, that is, to our first love — to the days of our youth, 
to our young, fresh, tender, and flourishing faith, love, and 
self-denial, that we received in the day of our espousals. 

they will be green, savory, reviving, flourishing, 
growing Christians that shall walk the streets of the new 
Jerusalem. 



Now there shall be a oneness of judgment and under- 
standing in the hearts of all saints ; they shall be now no 
more two, but one in the Lord's hand. 

Alas, the saints are yet but as an army routed, and are 
apt sometimes through fear, and sometimes through forget- 
fulness, to mistake the word of their Captain- general the 
Son of God, and are also too, too prone to shoot and kill 
even their very right-hand man. But at that day all such 
doing shall be laid aside, for the knowledge of the glory of 
the Lord shall cover the earth, as the waters cover the sea ; 
which knowledge shall then strike through the heart and 
liver of all swerving and unsound opinions in Christ's mat- 
ters ; for then shall every one of the Christians call upon 
the name of the Lord, and that with one pure lip, or lan- 
guage, to serve him with one consent. 



380 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

XXII. THE MINISTRY. 

IMPORTANCE OF THE MINISTRY. 

The church itself, without its watchmen, is a weak, 
feeble, and very helpless thing. What can the lady or mis- 
tress do to defend herself against thieves and sturdy vil- 
lains, if there be none but she at home ? It is said, when 
the shepherd is smitten, the sheep will be scattered. What 
could the temple do without its watchmen ? 1 Chron. 9 : 24. 

Then let the churches love their pastors, hear their pas- 
tors, be ruled by their pastors, and suffer themselves to be 
watched over, and to be exhorted, counselled, and if need 
be, reproved and rebuked by their pastors. And let the 
ministers not sleep, but be watchful, and look to the ordi- 
nances, to the souls of the saints, and the gates of the 
church. Watch, man ; taatch, man ; ivatch ! 



DUTY OF CHURCHES TO THE MINISTRY. 
churches, let your ministers be beautified with your 
love ; that they may beautify you with their love, and also 
be an ornament unto you, and to that gospel they minister 
to you, for Jesus Christ's sake. 



DIFFERENT CLASSES OF MINISTERS. 

Is the soul such an excellent thing, and is the loss 
thereof so unspeakably great ? Then this should teach 
the people to be very careful to whom they commit the 
teaching and guidance of their souls. 

This is a business of the greatest concern : men will be 
careful to whom they commit their children, whom they 
make the executors of their wills, in whose hand they trust 
the writing and evidences of their lands ; but how much 
more careful should we be, unto whom we commit the 
teaching and guidance of our souls. And yet most men are 
in these matters least of all careful. 

There are idol shepherds. Zech. 11 : 7. There are 



DIFFERENT CLASSES OF MINISTERS. 381 

foolish shepherds. Zech. 11:15. There are shepherds 
that feed themselves, and not their flocks. Ezek. 34 : 2. 
There are hard-hearted and pitiless shepherds. Zech. 
11:3. There are shepherds that instead of healing, smite, 
push, and wound the diseased. Ezek, 34:4, 21. There 
are shepherds that cause their flocks to go astray. Jer. 
50 : 6. And there are shepherds that feed their flocks : 
these are the shepherds to whom thou shouldst commit thy 
soul for teaching and for guidance. 



Then said the Interpreter, " Come in; I will show thee 
that which will be profitable to thee." So he commanded 
his man to light a candle, and bade Christian follow him. 
So he had him into a private room, and bid his man open 
a door : the which when he had done, Christian saw the 
picture of a very grave person hang up against the wall ; 
and this was the fashion of it : it had eyes lifted up to 
heaven, the best of books in its hand, the law of truth was 
written upon its lips, the world was behind its back ; it 
stood as if it pleaded with men, and a crown of gold did 
hang over its head. 

Then said Christian, "What meaneth this?" 
Interpreter. " The man whose picture this is, is one 
of a thousand ; he can beget children, 1 Cor. 4:15, travail 
in birth with children, Gal. 4:19, and nurse them himself 
when they are born. And whereas thou seest him with 
his eyes lifted up to heaven, the best of books in his hand, 
and the law of truth written on his lips; it is to show thee 
that his work is to know and to unfold dark things to sin- 
ners ; even as also thou seest him stand as if he pleaded 
with men. And whereas thou seest the world as cast be- 
hind him, and that a crown hangs over his head ; that is 
to show thee that, slighting and despising the things that 
are present for the love that he hath to his Master's ser- 
vice, he is sure, in the world that comes next, to have glory 
for his reward. 



382 HICHES OF BUNYAN. 

" Now," said the Interpreter, " I have showed thee this 
picture first, because the man whose picture this is, is the 
only man whom the Lord of the place whither thou art 
going hath authorized to be thy guide in all difficult places 
thou mayest meet with in the way ; wherefore, take good 
heed to what I have showed thee, and bear well in thy 
mind what thou hast seen, lest in thy journey thou meet 
with some that pretend to lead thee right, but their way 
goes down to death." 



DUTY OF MINISTERS. 

Would Jesus Christ have mercy offered in the first 
place to the biggest sinners ? then let God's ministers tell 
them so. 

There is a tendency in us, I know not how it doth 
come about, when we are converted to contemn them that 
are left behind. Poor fools as we are, we forget that we 
ourselves were so. 

But would it not become us better, since we have 
tasted that the Lord is gracious, so to act towards them 
that we may give them convincing ground to believe that 
we have found that mercy which also sets open the door 
for them to come and partake with us ? 

Austerity doth not become us, neither in doctrine nor in 
conversation. We ourselves live by grace ; let us give as 
we receive, and labor to persuade our fellow-sinners whom 
God has left behind us, to follow after, that they may par- 
take with us of grace. We are saved by grace, let us live 
like them that are gracious. Let all our things to the 
world be done in charity towards them ; pity them, pray 
for them, be familiar with them for their good. Let us 
lay aside our foolish, worldly, carnal grandeur ; let us not 
walk the streets, and have such behaviors as signify we 
are scarce for touching the poor ones that are left behind, 
no, not with a pair of tongs. 

Remember your Lord ; he was familiar with publicans 



MINISTERS WARNED. 383 

and sinners to a proverb. " Behold a gluttonous man and 
a wine-bibber ; a friend of publicans and sinners." Matt. 
11 : 19. The first part, concerning his gluttonous eating 
and drinking, to be sure, was a horrible slander; but for 
the other, nothing was ever spoken truer of him by the 
world. 

Now why should we lay hands cross on this text ; that 
is, choose good victuals and love the sweet wine better 
than the salvation of the poor publican? "Why not be 
familiar with sinners, provided we hate their spots and 
blemishes, and seek that they may be healed of them ? 
Why not be fellowly with our carnal neighbors, if we take 
occasion to do so that we may drop and be distilling some 
good doctrine upon their souls ? Why not go to the poor 
man's house, and give him a penny and a scripture to think 
upon ? 



MINISTERS WARNED. 

" There were giants in the earth in those days." These 
words seem to be spoken to show us the hazards that Noah 
run while he preached the truth of God ; he incurred the 
displeasure of the giants, who doubtless made all men trem- 
ble and kept the whole world in awe. But Noah must 
engage the giants, he must not fear the face of a giant. 

This way God also took with Moses and with his 
people of Israel. They must go to possess the land of 
the giants, a people high and tall as the cedars, a people 
of whom went the proverb, " Who can stand before the 
children of Anak ?" They must not be afraid of Og the 
king of Bashan, though his head be as high as the ridge 
of a house, and his bedstead a bedstead of iron. 

This should teach us not to fear the faces of men ; no, 
not the faces of the mighty ; not to fear them in the mat- 
ters of God, though they should run upon us like a giant. 

Persecution, or the appearance of the giants against 
the servants of God, is no new business ; not a thing of 



384 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

yesterday, but of old, even when Noah did minister for God 
in the world. 



" And Noah began to be a husbandman." This trade 
he took up for want of better employment ; or rather, in 
mine opinion, from some liberty he took to himself to be 
remiss in his care and work as a preacher. For seeing the 
church was now at rest, and having the world before them, 
they still retaining outward sobriety, poor Noah, good man, 
now might think with himself, " I need not now be so 
diligent, watchful, and painful in my ministry as formerly ; 
the church is but small, without opposition and also well 
settled in the truth ; I may now take to myself a little 
time to tamper with worldly things." So he makes an 
essay upon husbandry : " He began to be a husbandman." 
Ha, Noah, it was better with thee when thou wast better 
employed ; yea, it was better with thee w T hen a world of 
ungodly men set themselves against thee— yea, when every 
day thy life was in danger to be destroyed by the giants, 
against whom thou wast preacher above a hundred years — 
for then thou didst walk with God : then thou wast better 
than all the world ; but now thou art in the relapse. 



MINISTERS, SERVANTS OF THE CHURCH. 

Gifts and office make no men sons of God ; as so, they 
are but servants ; though these, as ministers and apostles, 
were servants of the highest form. It is the church, as 
such, that is the lady, a queen, the bride, the Lamb's wife ; 
and prophets, apostles, and ministers are but servants, 
stewards, laborers for her good. 

As therefore the lady is above the servant, the queen 
above the steward, or the wife above all her husband's offi- 
cers, so is the church, as such, above these officers. 



GIFTS AND GRACE IN MINISTERS. 
A tinkling cymbal, 1 Cor. 13 : 1, 2, is an instrument of 



GIFTS AND GRACE IN MINISTERS. 385 

music with which a skilful player can make such melo- 
dious and heart-inflaming music, that all who hear him 
play can scarcely hold from dancing ; and yet behold, the 
cymbal hath not life, neither comes the music from it, but 
because of the art of him that plays therewith ; so then the 
instrument at last may come to naught and perish, though 
in times past such music hath been made upon it. 

Just thus I saw it was and will be with them that 
have gifts, but want saving grace : they are in the hand of 
Christ, as the cymbal in the hand of David; and as David 
could with the cymbal make that mirth in the service of 
God as to elevate the hearts of the worshippers, Christ can 
so use these gifted men, as with them to affect the souls of 
his people in his church ; and yet when he hath done all, 
hang them by, as lifeless, though sounding cymbals. 



A man may be used as a servant in the church of God, 
and may receive many gifts and much knowledge of the 
things of heaven, and yet at last, himself be no more than 
a very bubble and nothing. 

This our day doth indeed abound with gifts ; many spark- 
ling wits are seen in every corner ; men have the word and 
truths of Christ at their fingers' ends. But alas, with 
many, yea a great many, there is naught but wits and 
gifts : they are but words ; all their religion lieth in their 
tongues and heads ; the power of what they say and know 
is seen in others, not in themselves. These are like the 
lord on whom the king of Israel leaned ; they shall see the 
plenty, the blessed plenty that God doth provide and will 
bestow upon his church, but they shall not taste thereof. 



Alas, great light, great parts, great works, and great 
confidence of heaven, may be where there is no faith of 
God's elect, no love of the Spirit, no repentance unto salva- 
tion, no sanctification of the Spirit, and so, consequently, 
no saving grace. 

R.iches of Bunyan. ^ "J 



386 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

THE FALSE MINISTER. 

So Christian and Hopeful went on, and Ignorance fol- 
lowed. They went then till they came to a place where 
they saw a way put itself into their way, and seemed 
withal to lie as straight as the way which they should go ; 
and here they knew not which of the two to take, for both 
seemed straight before them ; therefore, here they stood still 
to consider. 

And as they were thinking about the way, behold, a 
man black of flesh, but covered with a very light robe, 
came to them, and asked them why they stood there. 
They answered, that they were going to the celestial city, 
but knew not which of these ways to take. "Follow me," 
said the man ; " it is thither that I am going." So they 
followed him in the way that but now came into the road, 
which by degrees turned, and turned them so far from the 
city that they desired to go to, that in a little time their 
faces were turned away from it ; yet they followed him. 
But by and by, before they were aware, he led them both 
within the compass of a net, in which they were both 
so entangled that they knew not what to do ; and with 
that the white robe fell off from the black man's back : 
then they saw where they were. Wherefore, there they 
lay crying some time, for they could not get themselves 
out. 

Then said Christian to his fellow, ' ; !Now do I see my- 
self in an error. Did not the shepherds bid us beware of the 
flatterer?" Thus they lay bewailing themselves in the 
net. At last they spied a shining one coming towards 
them with a whip of small cords in his hand. When he 
was come to the place where they were, he asked them 
whence they came, and what they did there. They told 
him that they were poor pilgrims going to Zion, but were 
led out of their way by a black man clothed in white, who 
bid us, said they, follow him, for he was going thither too. 
Then said he with the whip, " It is Flatterer, a false apos- 



THE FALSE MINISTER. 387 

tie, that hath transformed himself into an angel of light." 
So he rent the net, and let the men out. 

Then said he to them, "Follow me, that I may set you 
in your way again." So he led them back to the way which 
they had left to follow the flatterer. Then he asked them, 
saying, "Where did you lie the last night?" They said, 
" With the shepherds upon the delectable mountains." He 
asked them then, if they had not a note of direction for the 
way. They answered, " Yes." " But did you not," said he, 
" when you were at a stand, pluck out and read your note ?" 
They answered, " No." He asked them, " Why ?" They 
said they forgot. He asked, moreover, if the shepherds did 
not bid them beware of the flatterer. They answered, 
11 Yes ; but we did not imagine," said they, " that this fine- 
spoken man had been he." Horn. 16 : 17, 18. 

Then I saw in my dream that he commanded them to 
lie down, Deut. 29 : 2 ; which when they did, he chastised 
them sore, to teach them the good way wherein they should 
walk, 2 Chron. 6 : 26, 27 ; and as he chastised them he said, 
"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zealous 
therefore and repent." This done, he bid them go on their 
way, and take heed to the other directions of the shepherds. 
So they thanked him for his kindness, and went softly along 
the right way, singing. 



Another reason why delusions do so easily take place in 
the hearts of the ignorant, is because those that pretend to 
be their teachers do behave themselves so basely among 
them. And indeed I may say of these, as our Lord said of 
the Pharisees in another case, All the blood of the igno- 
rant, from the beginning of the world, shall be laid to the 
charge of this generation. They that pretend they are 
sent of the Lord, and come saying, Thus saith the Lord ; 
we are the servants of the Lord ; our commission is from 
the Lord — I say, those who pretend themselves to be the 
preachers of truth, but are not, do by their loose conversa- 



388 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

tion render the true doctrine of God and his Son Jesus 
Christ contemptible, and do give the adversary mighty 
encouragement to cry out against the truths of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, because of their wicked walking. Now 
" shall not his soul be avenged on such a nation as this ?" 
who pretend to be teachers of the people in goodness, 
when, as for the most part of them, they are the men that 
at this day do harden their hearers in their sins, by giving 
them such ill examples that none goeth beyond them for 
impiety ? As for example, Would a parishioner learn to be 
proud ? he or she need look no further than to the priest, 
his wife, and family ; for there is a notable pattern before 
them. Would the people learn to be wanton ? they may 
also see a pattern among their teachers. Would they learn 
to be drunkards ? they may also have that from some of 
their ministers ; for indeed they are ministers in this, to 
minister ill examples to their congregations. Again, would 
the people learn to be covetous ? they need but look to their 
ministers, and they shall have a lively, or rather a deadly, 
resemblance set before them, in both riding and running 
after great benefices and parsonages, by night and by day ; 
nay, they among themselves will scramble for the same. I 
have seen, that so soon as a man hath but departed from 
his benefice as he calls it, either by death or out of covet- 
ousness of a bigger, we have had one priest from this town, 
and another from that, so run for these tithe-cocks and 
handfuls of barley, as if it were their proper trade and call- 
ing to hunt after the same. 



A covetous minister is a base thing; a pillar more 
symbolizing Lot's wife, than a holy apostle of Jesus 
Christ. 



The unbelieving world slight the Scriptures because 
carnal priests tickle the ears of their hearers with vain 
philosophy and deceit, and thereby harden their hearts 



THE MINISTER AT THE JUDGMENT. 389 

against the simplicity of the gospel and word of God ; 
which things the apostle admonished those that have a 
mind to dose in with Christ, to avoid, saying, " Beware 
lest any man," be he what he will, ''spoil you through phi- 
losophy and vain deceit, after the traditions of men and 
rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." 

And you who muzzle up your people in ignorance, with 
Aristotle, Plato, and the rest of the heathenish philosophers, 
and preach little if any thing of Christ rightly — I say unto 
you, that you will find you have sinned against God and 
beguiled your hearers, when God shall in the judgment-day 
lay the cause of the damnation of many thousands of souls 
to your charge, and say, "I will require their blood at your 
hands." 



THE MINISTER, AT THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. 

Some men, it is to be feared, at the day of judgment, 
will be found to be the authors of destroying whole nations. 
How many souls, do you think, Balaam with his deceit will 
have to answer for ? How many Mahomet ? How many 
the Pharisees that hired the soldiers to say the disciples stole 
away Jesus, and by that means stumbled their brethren to 
this day ? 

How many poor souls hath Bonner to answer for, think 
you ; and several filthy, blind priests ? How many souk 
have they been the means of destroying by their ignorance 
and corrupt doctrine ? preaching that which was no better 
for their souls than ratsbane to the body, for filthy lucre's 
sake. They shall see that they, many of them it is to be 
feared, will have whole towns to answer for, whole cities 
to answer for. Ah, friend, I tell thee, thou that hast taken 
in hand to preach to the people, it may be thou hast taken 
in hand thou canst not tell what. Will it not grieve thee 
to see thy whole parish come bellowing after thee to hell, 
crying out, This we may thank thee for ; thou didst not 
teach us the truth ; thou didst lead us away with fables ; 



390 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thou wast afraid to tell us of our sins, lest we should not 
put meat fast enough into thy mouth. cursed wretch, 
that ever thou shouldst beguile us thus, deceive as thus, 
flatter us thus. We would have gone out to hear the word 
abroad, but that thou didst reprove us, and also tell us 
that that which we see now is the way of God w r as heresy 
and a deceivable doctrine, and wast not contented, blind 
guide as thou wert, to fall into the ditch thyself, but hast 
also led us thither with thee. 

I say, look to thyself, lest thou cry out when it is too 
late, Send Lazarus to my people, my friends, my children, 
my congregation to whom I preached, and whom I beguiled 
through my folly. Send him to the town in which I did 
preach last, lest I be the cause of their damnation. 



BUNYAN'S MINISTRY. 

In my preaching of the word, I took special notice of 
this one thing, namely, that the Lord did lead me to begin 
where his word begins with sinners ; that is, to condemn 
all flesh, and to open and allege that the curse of God by 
the law doth belong to, and lay hold on all men as they 
come into the world, because of sin. 

Now this part of my work I fulfilled with great feeling ; 
for the terrors of the law, and guilt for my transgressions, 
lay heavy on my conscience : I preached what I felt, what 
I smartingly did feel ; even that under which my poor soul 
did groan and tremble to astonishment. 

Indeed, I have been as one sent to them from the dead ; 
I went myself in chains, to preach to them in chains ; and 
carried that fire in my own conscience, that I persuaded 
them to be aware of. I can truly say, and that without 
dissembling, that when I have been to preach, I have gone 
full of guilt and terror even to the pulpit-door, and there it 
hath been taken off, and I have been at liberty in my mind 
until I have done my work ; and then immediately, even 
before I could get down the pulpit-stairs, I have been as 



BUNYAN'S MINISTRY. 391 

bad as I was before ; yet God carried me on, "but surely 
with a strong hand, for neither guilt nor hell could take 
me off my work. 

Thus I went on for the space of two years, crying out 
against men's sins, and their fearful state because of them. 
After which the Lord came in upon my soul with some 
sure peace and comfort through Christ ; for he did give 
me many sweet discoveries of his blessed grace through 
him : wherefore now I altered my preaching — for still I 
preached what I saw and felt. Now, therefore, I did much 
labor to hold forth Jesus Christ in all his offices, relations, 
and benefits unto the world ; and did strive also to discover, 
to condemn, and remove those false supports and props on 
which the world doth both lean and by them fall and 
perish. On these things also I staid as long as on the 
other. 

When I have been preaching, I thank God, my heart 
hath often all the time of this and the other exercise, with 
great earnestness cried to God that he would make the 
word effectual to the salvation of the soul ; still being 
grieved lest the enemy should take the word away from 
the conscience, and so it should become unfruitful : where- 
fore I have labored so to speak the word, as that thereby, 
if it were possible, the sin and person guilty might be par- 
ticularized by it. 

And when I have done the exercise, it hath gone to 
my heart to think the word should now fall as rain on 
stony places ; still wishing from my heart, Oh, that they 
who have heard me speak this day did but see as I do, 
what sin, death, hell, and the curse of God are ; and also 
what the grace, and love, and mercy of God are, through 
Christ, to men in such a case as they are who are yet 
estranged from him. And indeed, I did often say in my 
heart before the Lord, that if I should be hanged up pres- 
ently before their eyes, and it would be a means to awaken 



392 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

them and confirm them in the truth, I gladly should be 
contented. 



For I have been in my preaching, especially when I 
have been engaged in the doctrine of life by Christ without 
works, as if an angel of God had stood at my back to en- 
courage me. Oh, it hath been with such power and heav- 
enly evidence upon my own soul, while I have been labor- 
ing to unfold it, to demonstrate it, and to fasten it upon the 
consciences of others, that I could not be contented with 
saying, I believe, and am sure. Methought I was more 
than sure — if it be lawful thus to express myself — that 
those things which then I asserted were true. 



If any of those who were awakened by my ministry 
did after that fall back — as sometimes too many did — I 
can truly say, their loss hath been more to me than if my 
own children, begotten of my body, had been going to their 
grave. I think verily I may speak it without any offence 
to the Lord, nothing has gone so near me as that ; unless 
it was the fear of the loss of the salvation of my own soul. 
I have counted as if I had goodly buildings and lordships 
in those places where my children were born : my heart 
hath been so wrapped up in the glory of this excellent 
work, that I counted myself more blessed and honored of 
God by this, than if he had made me emperor of the 
Christian world or the lord of all the glory of the earth 
without it. Oh these words: "He that converteth the 
sinner from the error of his way,' shall save a soul from 
death." " The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life ; and 
he that winneth souls is wise." u They that be wise shall 
shine as the brightness of the firmament ; and they that 
turn many to righteousness, as the stars for ever and ever." 
"For what is our hope, our joy, our crown of rejoicing? 
Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at 
his coming? For ye are our glory and joy." These, I say, 



BUNYAN'S CHARACTER AND PRINCIPLES. 393 

with, many others of a like nature, have been great re- 
freshments to me. 



I have observed that a word cast in by the by, hath 
done more execution in a sermon, than all that was spoken 
besides : sometimes also, when I have thought I did no 
good, then I did the most of all ; and at other times, when 
I thought I could catch them, I have fished for nothing. 



BUNYAN'S CHARACTER AND PRINCIPLES 
For my descent, it was, as is well known by many, of 
a low and inconsiderable generation ; my father's house 
being of that rank that is meanest and most despised of all 
the families of the land. Wherefore I have not, as others, 
to boast of noble blood and of any high-born estate accord- 
ing to the flesh ; though all things considered, I magnify 
the heavenly Majesty for that by this door he brought me 
into the world, to partake of the grace and life that is in 
Christ by the gospel. 

What need you, before you have showed one syllable of 
a reasonable argument in opposition to what I assert, thus 
trample my person, my gifts, and grace — have I any — so 
disdainfully under your feet, because of my low descent 
among men ; stigmatizing me for a person of that rank that 
need not to be heeded. And what, is my rank so mean 
that the most gracious and godly among you may not duly 
and soberly consider what I have said ? Was it not the 
act of the false apostles to say thus — to bespatter a man 
that his doctrine might be disregarded? " Is not this the 
carpenter?" and, " His bodily presence is weak and his 
speech contemptible," did not use to be in the mouths of 
the saints ; for they knew the wind blew where it listed. 
Neither is it high birth, worldly breeding, or wealth ; but 
electing love, grace, and the wisdom that comes from 
heaven, that those who strive for strictness of order in the 
things and kingdom of Christ, should have in regard and 

17* 



394 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

esteem. Need I read you a lecture ? Hath not God 
chosen the foolish, the weak, the base, yea and even things 
that are not to bring to naught things that are ? Why 
then do you despise my rank, my state, and quality in the 
world ? 



Since you would know by what name I would be dis- 
tinguished from others, I tell you, I would be, and I hope 
I am, a Christian; and choose, if God should count me 
worthy, to be called a Christian, a believer, or other such 
name which is approved by the Holy Ghost. 



Your artificial, squibbling suggestions to the world about 
myself, my imprisonment, and the like, I freely bind unto 
me as an ornament among the rest of my reproaches, till 
the Lord shall wipe them off at his coming. 



Faith and holiness are my professed principles, with 
an endeavor, so far as in me lieth, to be at peace with all 
men. What shall I say? Let mine enemies themselves 
be judges, if any thing in these following doctrines, or if 
aught that any man hath heard me preach, doth or hath, 
according to the true intent of my words, savored either of 
heresy or rebellion. I say again, let them themselves be 
judges, if aught they find in my writing or preaching doth 
render me worthy of almost twelve years' imprisonment, 
or one that deserveth to be hanged or banished for ever, 
according to their tremendous sentence. Indeed my prin- 
ciples are such as lead me to a denial to communicate in 
the things of the kingdom of Christ with the ungodly and 
open profane ; neither can I consent that my soul should 
be governed in any of my approaches to God by the super- 
stitious inventions of this world, because commanded to 
the contrary, or commended for so refusing. Wherefore, 
excepting in this one thing — for which I ought not to be 
rebuked — I shall, I trust, in despite of slander and false- 



BUNYAN'S CHARACTER AND PRINCIPLES. 395 

hood, discover myself at all times a peaceable and obedient 
subject. But if nothing will do, unless I make my con- 
science a continual butchery or slaughter-shop — unless, 
putting out mine own eyes, I commit myself to the blind 
to lead me, as I doubt not is desired by some — I have de- 
termined, the Almighty God being my help and shield, yet 
to suffer, if frail life might continue so long, even till the 
moss shall grow on mine eyebrows, rather than thus to 
violate my faith and principles. 



To the reader. I marvel not that both yourself and 
others do think my long imprisonment strange — or rather 
strangely of me for the sake of that— for verily I should 
also have done it myself, had not the Holy Ghost long since 
forbidden me. 1 Pet. 4:12; 1 John, 3 : 13. Nay, verily, 
notwithstanding that, had the adversary but fastened the 
supposition of guilt upon me, my long trials might by this 
time have put it beyond dispute ; for I have not hitherto been 
so sordid, as to stand to a doctrine right or wrong ; much 
less, when so weighty an argument as above eleven years' 
imprisonment is continually dogging of me to weigh and 
pause and weigh again the grounds and foundation of those 
principles for which I thus have suffered. But having not 
only at my trial asserted them, but also since — even all 
this tedious tract of time, in cool blood, a thousand times — 
by the word of God examined them, and found them good, 
I cannot, I dare not now revolt or deny the same, on pain 
of eternal damnation. 



396 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 



XXIII. ANTICHRIST. 

ANTICHRIST DESCRIBED. 

Antichrist is the adversary of Christ ; an adversary 
really, a friend pretendedly. So then antichrist is one that 
is against Christ ; one that is for Christ, and one that is 
contrary to him ; and this is that " mystery of iniquity." 

Against him in deed ; for him in word, and contrary to 
him in practice : antichrist is so proud as to go before 
Christ, so humble as to pretend to come after him, and so 
audacious as to say that himself is He. Antichrist will 
cry up Christ ; antichrist will cry down Christ ; antichrist 
will proclaim that himself is one above Christ. 

Antichrist is the " man of sin," the " son of perdition ;" 
a beast that hath two horns like a lamb, but speaks as a 
dragon. 

Christ is the Son of God ; antichrist is the son of hell. 

Christ is holy, meek, and forbearing; antichrist is 
wicked, outrageous, and exacting. 

Christ seeketh the good of the soul ; antichrist seeks 
his own avarice and revenge. 

Christ is content to rule by his word ; antichrist saith 
the word is not sufficient. 

Christ preferreth his Father's will above heaven and 
earth ; antichrist preferreth himself and his traditions 
above all that is written, or that is called God or wor- 
shipped. 

Christ has given us such laws and rules as are helpful 
and healthful to the soul"; antichrist seeketh to abuse those 
rules to our hurt and destruction. 

The spirit or soul or life of antichrist is that spirit of 
error, " that wicked," that " mystery of iniquity," that 
under color and pretence of verity draws men from truth 
to falsehood. 

The body or flesh of antichrist is that church or syn- 



RISE AND PROG-RESS OF ANTICHRIST. 397 

agogue of Satan in which the spirit of antichrist dwells, 
or unto which the spirit of antichrist is become a soul and 
life. 

But God will destroy both soul and body. 

Antichrist therefore is a mystical man, so made or be- 
gotten of the devil, and sent into the world, Satan himself 
being the chief and highest part of him. 

Three things therefore go to the making up of anti- 
christ : the head, body, and soul. The devil, he is the 
head ; the synagogue of Satan, that is the body ; that 
wicked spirit of iniquity, that is the soul of antichrist. 

Christ then is the head of his church, the devil is the 
head of antichrist ; the elect are the body of Christ, the 
reprobate professors are the body of antichrist ; the Holy 
Ghost is the Spirit of life that acteth Christ's body ; that 
wicked spirit of iniquity is that which acteth the body of 
antichrist. 

Thus therefore are the two great mighties set forth be- 
fore us, who are the heads of those two bodies. 



RISE AND PROG-RESS OF ANTICHRIST. 

The reason why Christ came into the world was, that 
he might destroy all the works of the head of antichrist, 
and them which he endeavors to complete by his wicked 
spirit working in his body. And the reason why antichrist 
came into the world was, that the church, which is the 
body of Christ, might be tried and made white by suffering 
under his tyranny, and by bearing witness against his 
falsehoods. For, for the trial of the faithful and for the 
punishment of the world, antichrist was admitted to come. 
But when he came, he first appeared where one would 
have thought there had been no place nor corner for his 
reception. 

Here therefore was his first appearance, even in the 
church of God. Not that the church did willingly admit 
him there to sit as such ; he had covered his cloven foot ; 



398 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

he had plums in his dragon's mouth, and so came in by- 
flatteries, promising to do for Christ and his church that 
which he never meant to perform ; for he showed himself 
that he was God, and in appearance set his heart to do as 
the heart of God. 

And who could have found in their heart to shut the 
door upon such a one ? True, he came, when he came 
thither, out of the bottomless pit ; but there came such a 
smoke out thence with him, and that smoke so darkened 
the light of the sun, of the moon, of the stars, and of the 
day, that had they been upon their watch, as they were 
not, they could not have perceived him from another man. 
Besides, there came with him so many locusts to usher him 
into the house of God, and they so suited the flesh and 
reason of the godly of that day, that with good words and 
fair speeches, by their crafty and cunning sleights whereby 
they lay in wait to deceive, they quite got him in, and set 
him up and made him a great one, even the chief, before 
they were aware. Further, he quickly got him a beast to 
ride on, far, for sumptuous glory, beyond — though as to 
nature as assish a creature as — that on which Balaam was 
wont to ride ; and by this exaltation he not only became 
more stately, but the horns of the beast would push for 
him. 

Again, this man of sin, when he came into the world, 
had the art of metamorphosing, and could change himself, 
both in form and shape, into the likeness of a beast, a 
man, or woman. 



A lily among thorns, a pearl on a dunghill, and beauty 
under a veil, will make one turn aside to look on it. An- 
swerable to this, the church, even in the wilderness or 
under persecution, is compared not only to a woman, but 
to a comely and delicate woman. Thus the church, 
though in her weeds of widowhood, is become the desire of 
the eyes of the nations ; for indeed her features are such, 



RISE AND PROGRESS OF ANTICHRIST. 399 

considering who is her head, where mostly to the eye 
beauty lies, that whoso sees but the utmost glimpse of her 
is easily ravished with her beauties. The church, the 
very name of the church of God is beautiful in the world ; 
and as among women, she that has beauty has her head 
desired, if it might be, to stand upon another woman's 
shoulders ; so this and that and every nation that beholds 
the beauty of the church, would fain be called by that 
name. 

The church, one would think, was but in a homely 
dress when she was coming out of captivity ; and yet then 
the people of the countries desired to be one with her: 
" Let us," said they to Zerubbabel and to the fathers of the 
church, "build with you, for we seek your God as you do." 

The very name of the church is striven for of the world ; 
but that is the church which Christ has made so ; her 
features also remain with herself. Hear the relation that 
the Holy Ghost gives of the intrinsic beauty of the church 
when she was to go to be in a persecuted state : " She was 
clothed with the sun, had the moon under her feet, and 
had upon her head a crown of twelve stars." And yet 
now the dragon stood by. But I say, here is a woman ! 
Let any one who will attempt it show such another in the 
world if he can. 

They therefore that have any regard to morality, civil- 
ity, or to ceremonial comeliness, covet to be of the church 
of God, or to appropriate that glorious title to themselves. 

And here indeed antichrist came in. She took this 
name to herself; and though she could not come at the 
sun, nor moon, nor stars, to adorn herself with them, yet 
she has found something that makes her comely in her fol- 
lowers' eyes. See how the Holy Ghost sets her forth : she 
was arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with 
gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup 
in her hand. Hence she is called the well-favored harlot, 
the lady of kingdoms. 



400 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

But because the chaste matron, the spouse of Christ, 
would not allow this harlot to run away with this name, 
therefore she gets upon the back of her beast, and by him 
pushes this woman into the dirt ; but because her faith 
and love to her husband remain, she turns again and 
pleads by her titles, her features, and ornaments, that she 
and she only is she whose square answereth to the charac- 
ters which her Lord had given of his own ; and so the 
strife began. For so soon as this mistress became a dame 
in the world, and found that she had her stout abettors, she 
attempts to turn all things topsy-turvy, and to set them and 
to make of them what she lists. 



CORRUPTION OF THE CHURCH BY ANTICHRIST. 

Mischief must needs follow this ugly deed of the man 
of sin. If a house be on fire, though it is not burnt down, 
the smell of the flame may long remain there : also we 
count it no wonder to see some of the effects upon rafters, 
beams, and some of the principal posts thereof. The calf 
that was set up at Dan defiled that people until the cap- 
tivity of the land. 

For by antichristian darkness, though they might call 
it light, the true light was darkened, and so the eye made 
dim, even the eye of the truly godly. Also the Holy Ghost 
did much withdraw himself from the church ; so the doc- 
trines, traditions, and rudiments of the world took more 
hold there, and spread themselves more formidably over 
the face of that whole church. 

And this being the effect of light against light at first, 
is the cause of what to this day we see in the church 
among the true brotherhood. For as a cause produceth an 
effect, so oftentimes an effect sets on foot another cause. 
Witness the jars, the oppositions, the contentions, emula- 
tions, strifes, debates, whisperings, tumults, and condemna- 
tions, that like cannon-shot have so frequently on all sides 
been let fly against one another. 



CORRUPTION BY ANTICHRIST. 401 

The godly all hold the Head ; for there antichrist could 
never divide them. Their divisions therefore are only 
about smaller things. 

I do not say that the antichristian darkness has done 
nothing in the church as to the hurting it in the great 
things of God. But I say, it has not been able to do that 
-which could sever their Head from them. Otherwise, there 
appears even too much of its doings there. For even as to 
the offices of our Lord, some will have his authority more 
large, some more strait ; some confine his rules to them- 
selves and to their more outward signification, and some 
believe they are extended further ; some will have his 
power in the church purely spiritual, others again would 
have it mixed ; some count his word perfect and sufficient 
to guide in all religious matters, others again hold that an 
addition of something human is necessary. 

This darkness could not sever the true church from her 
Head ; yet it has eclipsed the glory of things. By two 
lights a man cannot see this or that thing so exactly as by 
one single light ; no, they both make all confused, though 
they make not all invisible. As for instance, sunlight and 
moonlight together, firelight and sunlight together, candle- 
light and moonlight together, make things more obscure 
than to look on them by a single light. The word reflect- 
ing upon the understanding without the interposing of 
man's traditions, makes the mind of God to a man more 
clear than when attended with the other. 

Things therefore will never be well in the church of 
God so long as there is thus light against light therein. 
When there is but one Lord among us, and his name one ; 
and when divisions, by the consent of the whole, are ban- 
ished — I mean, not persecuted, but abandoned in all by a 
joint consent, and when every man shall submit his own 
single opinion to those truths that by their being retained 
are for the health of all — then look for good days, and not 
till then. 



402 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

CONFLICT BETWEEN THE CHURCH AND ANTI- 
CHRIST. 

They that are the church do in God's light see light ; 
but they that are not, do in their own way see. And let a 
man and a beast look out at the same window, the same 
door, the same casement, yet the one will see like a man, 
and the other but like a beast. 

No marvel then if there is here a disagreement ; the 
beast can but see as a beast, but the church is resolved not 
to be guided by the eye of a beast, though he pretends to 
have his light by that very window by which the church 
has hers. The beast is moon-eyed, and puts darkness for 
light, yea, and hates the light that is so indeed ; but the 
saints will not hear him, for they know the voice of their 
Lord. 

On both sides they are resolved to stand by their way : 
the church is confident, the man of sin is confident ; they 
both have the same windows- — that is, " the word " — to see 
by, and so they manage their matters ; yet not so simply 
by the windows as by the diverse judgment they make of 
that which shineth in at them. Each one therefore that 
hath the true or false profession will be confident of his 
own way : he that was right, knew he was right ; and he 
that was wrong, thought he was right ; and so the battle 
began : " There is a way that seemeth right to a man, but 
the end thereof are the ways of death." 

Nor is it in man to help it : there has been reasoning, 
there has been disputing, there has blood also been spilt on 
both sides, through the confidence that each had of the 
goodness of his own way : but no reconciliation is made ; 
the enmity is set here of God ; iron and clay cannot mix ; 
God will have things go on thus in the world till his word 
shall be fulfilled ; the deceived and the deceiver are his. 
Things therefore must have their course in the church in 
the wilderness till the mystery of God shall be fulfilled. 
God will get to himself great glory by permitting the boar, 



FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 403 

the man of sin and the dragon, to revel in the church of 
God ; for they by setting up and contending for their dark- 
ness, and calling it the light, and by setting it against that 
light which is light in very deed, do not only prove the 
power of truth where it is, but illustrate it so much the 
more ; for as black sets off white, and darkness light, so 
error sets off truth. He that calls a man a horse, doth but 
fix the belief of his humanity so much the more in the 
apprehension of all rational creatures. 

It is not therefore to be wondered at that we hear both 
parties plead so much for their authority, crying out against 
each other as those that destroy religion. So doth the 
church, so doth the man of sin. The living child is mine, 
saith one. Nay, but the dead child is thine, and the living 
child is mine, says the other. And thus they spake before 
the king. 

The church will not give place, for she knows she has 
the truth ; the dragon and his angels, they will not give 
place, but as beaten back by the power of truth. There- 
fore there will, there must, there cannot but be a spiritual 
warfare here, and that until one of the two is destroyed, 
and its body given to the burning flame. 



FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 

Antichrist had a time to come into the world, and so 
must he have a time to go out again. For although he 
saith that he is a god, yet he must be subject to the will of 
God, and must go as well as come according to that will. 
Nor can all the fallen angels, with all the members and 
limbs of antichrist, cause this, that their brat should abide 
so much as one day longer than our God's prefixed time. 
The Lord Jesus shall consume him, and cause him to melt 
away ; not all at once, but now this part and then that, 
now his soul and after that his body, even until soul and 
body are both destroyed. 

And that you may be convinced of the truth of this 



404 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thing, do but look back and compare antichrist four or five 
hundred years ago, with antichrist as he is now, and you 
shall see what work the Lord Jesus has begun to make 
with him, even with the spirit and soul and life of anti- 
christ, both in confounding and blasting it by the Spirit of 
his mouth, as also by forcing it to dishonorable retreats, and 
by making it give up to him as the conqueror, not only 
some of his superstitious and diabolical rites and cere- 
monies to be destroyed, but many a goodly truth which this 
vile one had taken from his church, to be renewed to them. 
Nay, further, he has also already begun to take from him 
both kingdoms and countries, though as to some not so 
absolutely as he shall do by and by. 

And how has this long ago been fulfilled here in Eng- 
land, as also in Scotland, Holland, Germany, France, Swe- 
den, Denmark, Hungary, and other places. Nor has this 
spirit of antichrist, with all his art and artifices, been able 
to reduce to antichrist again those people, nations, or parts 
of nations, that by the Spirit of Christ's mouth and the 
brightness of his coming have been made to forsake him, 
and to turn from him to Christ. 

The reason is, that the Lord has not retreated, but is 
still going on in the Spirit of his mouth and in his brightness 
to make that conquest over him that is determined, in the 
way that is determined ; for the pathway that he goeth is as 
the shining light which shines more and more unto noon. 



The first and chief proceeding of the Lord with the man 
of sin is to slay his soul, that his body may also be con- 
sumed ; and when the spirit of antichrist shall be made to 
leave both the body and ordinances of antichrist, it will be 
easy to deal both with the one and the other. 

And first, for the ordinances of antichrist,, because the 
spirit of error is in them as well as in the body itself. When 
that spirit has left them, they will of themselves even 
moulder away and not be ; as we have seen by experience 



FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 405 

here in England, and as others also have seen in other 
countries. 

For as concerning his masses, prayers for the dead, 
images, pilgrimages, monkish vows, sinful fasts, and the 
beastly single life of their priests, though when the spirit 
of antichrist was in them they did hear some sway in the 
world, yet now of what esteem are they, or who has rev- 
erence for them ? They are now blown together under 
hedges as the dry leaves, for the mice and frogs to harbor 
in. By ordinances of antichrist, I do not intend things that 
only respect matters of worship in antichrist's kingdom, but 
those civil laws that impose and enforce them also, yea, 
enforce that worship with pains and penalties, as in the 
Spanish inquisition. 

These are the very pillars and sinews by which anti- 
christianism remains ; and were these dispirited, the whole 
building would quickly become a ruinous heap. 

What could the king of Babylon's golden image have 
done, had it not been for the burning fiery furnace that 
stood within view of the worshippers ? Yea, what could 
that horrible command to pray for thirty days to neither 
God nor man but to the king, have done, had it not been 
for the dark den and the roaring lions there in readiness to 
devour those that disobeyed it ? 

As therefore the burning fiery furnace and the den of 
lions were the support of the horrible religion of the Baby- 
lonians of old, so popish edicts are the support of the 
religion of antichrist now ; and as long as there is spirit, 
that is, authority in them, they are like to those now men- 
tioned. The spirit of such laws it is that makes them 
dreadful ; for as the furnace would have been next to 
nothing if void of fire, and the den as little frightful if 
destitute of lions, so these laws will be as insignificant 
when Christ has slain the spirit that is in them — that 
spirit which causes that as many as will not worship the 
imasre of the beast should be killed. 



406 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

MANNER OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 

Antichrist shall be brought to ruin gradually ; a part 
after a part : here a fenced city and there a high tower, 
even until she is made to lie even with the. ground. 

As for the order of the angels that pour forth this 
wrath, they plainly show that this enemy must come down 
by degrees ; for these vials are by them poured out one 
after another. Now, since by these vials antichrist must 
fall, it is evident that this man of sin, this son of perdition, 
is to fall and die by degrees. He w r ould not die at all, as 
is manifest by his wrestling with it ; but it is an almighty 
God that judges, and therefore he must come down. His 
friends also, with what cordials they can, will labor to 
lengthen out his tranquillity ; but God hath set his bounds, 
and he cannot go beyond the time appointed. 

We must also put a difference betwixt his being fought 
with and wounded, and that of his dying the death. 
Michael and his angels have been holding him in play a 
long season, but yet he is not dead ; but, as I said, he 
shall descend into battle and perish, and shall be found no 
more for ever. 



" And the cities of the nations fell," Hev. 16:19; the 
cities of the nations, the antichristian churches, otherwise 
called the daughters of the mother of harlots. This is a 
second stroke that God will give this man of sin, and a 
third cometh quickly. 

Wherefore it follows, upon the dow r nfall of those cities 
of the nations, that great Babylon came into remembrance 
before God, to give unto her the cup of the w T ine of the 
fierceness of his wrath. Now then, strike at great Bab- 
ylon. Great Babylon ! What is that ? Why, I take it to 
be the mother, the metropolitan, the great harlot herself. 
For though sometimes by great Babylon we may under- 
stand the church of antichrist in general, yet by it is meant 



MODE OF ANTICHRIST'S FALL. 407 

more properly the mother of the daughters, of whose over- 
throw we have spoken before. 

We are now, then, come to the threshold of the door of 
the house of the old one — to the door of the mother of har- 
lots and abomination of the earth. This then that but now 
is said to come into remembrance with God, is that which 
gave being to the cities destroyed before, to wit, the minis- 
ters, the queen, the mother-church as she calls herself. 

And this is the wisdom of God concerning her, that she 
should not be the first that should die, but that she should 
live to see the destruction of her daughters, and pine away 
under the fright and sense of that, even until judgment 
also shall overtake herself. 

Thus Pharaoh and his chief ones did live to see the 
greatest part of Egypt destroyed, before judgment overtook 
them; but at last it came to their doors also. Zedekiah 
lived to see his children slain before his face, before judg- 
ment overtook him to his own personal destruction. 

Babylon also, when God sent the cup of his fury unto 
her, yet was to live to see the nations drink before her. 

From all which I conclude that the mother, the metro- 
politan, the lady of kingdoms, shall live to see her daugh- 
ters executed before her face ; after which, she shall come 
into consideration herself, for she must assuredly drink of 
the cup. 

This destruction must be last for this reason also, be- 
cause she most deserves the bottom of the cup. The bot- 
tom is the dregs, the most bitter part, and that where the 
most heat and fiercest wrath of God do lie. And great 
Babylon came into remembrance before God : " To give 
unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath." 

Xow then is the time of iniquity, when it will be come 
to the full ; and now also is the time of God's anger, when 
it will be come to the full. Now therefore must the mur- 
ders and thefts and blasphemies and fornications belonging 
to this mother of harlots, be recompensed to the full, to 



408 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

wit, with the dregs of this cup. Yet since the hailstones 
come by weight and the wrath comes by measure — for so 
a talent and a cup imports, Rev. 16 : 17-21 — it follows 
that the almighty God, even in the midst of the heat of 
all this anger, will keep to the rules of justice and judgment 
while he is dealing with this enemy : he has not passions 
to carry him beyond rules of judgment, nor weakness to 
cause him to fall short of doing justice : therefore he has 
his judgments for her by weight, and his indignation by 
measure. But yet this weight and measure are not suited 
to her constitution, not with an intent to purge or refine 
her ; but it is disposed according to the measure and na- 
ture of her iniquity, and comes to sweep her as with the 
besom of destruction, until she is swept off from the face 
of all the earth. 

Now since she is dying, let us ring her passing-bell ; 
for when she is dead, we that live to see it intend to ring 
out. 



PRESENT STATE OF ANTICHRIST. 
Now I saw in my dream, that at the end of this valley 
lay blood, bones, ashes, and mangled bodies of men, even 
of pilgrims that had gone this way formerly ; and while I 
was musing what should be the reason, I spied a little be- 
fore me a cave, where two giants, Pope and Pagan, dwelt 
in old time ; by whose power and tyranny the men whose 
bones, blood, and ashes lay there, were cruelly put to death. 
But by this place Christian went without much danger, 
whereat I somewhat wondered ; but I have learnt since, 
that Pagan has been dead many a day ; and, as for the 
other, though he be still alive, he is, by reason of age, and 
also of the many shrewd brushes that he met with in his 
younger days, grown so crazy and stiff in his joints, that he 
now can do little more than sit in his cave's mouth, grin- 
ning at pilgrims as they go by, and biting his nails because 
he cannot come at them. 



WHY ANTICHRIST MUST PERISH. 409 

SLAYING- OF THE WITNESSES. 

Thus, as to sense and reason, all shall be hush, all 
shall be quiet and still, Rev. 11 :7-lo: the followers of 
the Lamb shall be down ; the followers of the beast shall 
be up, shall cry, Peace and safety, and be as secure as a 
hard heart, false peace, and a deceitful devil can make 
them. But behold, while they thus sing in the window, 
death is striding over the threshold ! While they are cry- 
ing peace and safety, sudden destruction cometh. By that 
they have well settled themselves at their table with Ado- 
nijah, 1 Kings, 1, they shall hear it proclaimed with sound 
of trumpet, The witnesses are risen again. 

Now the Christians' pipes will go again, and surely the 
earth will be rent with the sound of their shouts and accla- 
mations, while they cry with joyful sound, " The kingdoms 
of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of 
his Christ; and he shall reimi for ever and ever." 



REASONS FOR ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 

Antichrist must be destroyed, for that he has usurped 
the name and attributes of God upon himself. He hath 
said, I am God. For that antichrist has thus taken the 
place of God, prescribed and imposed a worship as a God, 
got the world to worship and wonder after him as after a 
God ; therefore he shall die the death of the uncircumcised, 
both in the soul, spirit, body, or flesh of antichrist. There- 
fore will God enlighten and gather and set the kings and 
nations against him, that both he and his may be buried, 
and have their dolesome withdrawing-rooms from the world 
in the sides of the pit's mouth. 

Antichrist must be destroyed, because he hath set him- 
self against the Son of God ; against the Father, and 
against the Son. He had a spite against the Son betimes, 
even then when he came forth but in little things, when 
he attempted to deny that He was come in the flesh. But 
seeing he could make no earnings of that, he has changed 

Riches of Bo.nyan. 1 8 



410 RICHES OF BCJNYAN. 

his methods, and seeks to run him out and down by other 
means and ways. " Because, therefore, he hath set him- 
self against the Son of God, the King, therefore he must 
die." 

That he hath also set himself against the Son of God, 
is evident ; for he has his name from thence : he is there- 
fore called Anti- Christ. 

That he hath set himself against Him, is yet further 
evident ; for that he has endeavored to take from him his 
headship once, and his offices for and in the church, which 
is his body ; and has called himself the head of the univer- 
sal church of God. 



Antichrist must be destroyed, because of his exceeding 
covetousness. Religion, such as it is, is the thing pretended 
to ; but the great things of this world are the things really 
intended by him in all his seeming self-denials and devo- 
tions. And for this covetousness also it is that this destruc- 
tion is to fall upon him. Woe to him that coveteth an evil 
covetousness to his house, (to his church,) that he may set 
his nest on high; for he could not do the one before he 
had obtained the other. For then indeed they began to 
be high, when they had so inveigled Constantine that he 
bestowed upon them much riches and honor ; and then 
it was cried by an angel, and the cry was heard in the 
city of Constantinople, Woe ! woe ! woe ! this day is venom 
poured into the church of God. 

Nor has any generation, since the world began, been so 
insatiably greedy of gain, as these 'poor people have been. 
They have got kingdoms, they have got crowns, they have 
got — what have they not got ? They have got every thing 
but grace and pardon. Did I say before that religion was 
their pretence ? Doth not the whole course of their way 
declare it to their face ? Every one of them, from the 
least even to the greatest, is given to covetousness ; from 
the prophet even to the priest, every one dealeth falsely. 



WHY ANTICHRIST MUST PERISH. 411 

Money, money, * as the pedlar cries, "broken or whole," is 
the sinews of their religion ; and it is for that they set 
kingdoms, crowns, principalities, places, preferments, sac- 
raments, pardons, prayers, indulgences, liberty, yea, and 
souls and bodies of men, women, and children, to sale ; 
yea, it is for this that they have invented so many places, 
offices, names, titles, orders, vows, etc. : it is to get money, 
to rob countries, that they may make their nests on high. 
And indeed they have done it, to the amazement of all the 
w T orld. They are clambered up above kings and princes 
and emperors ; they wear the triple crown ; they have 
made kings bow at their feet, and emperors stand barefoot 
at their gates ; they have kicked the crowns of princes 
from their heads, and set them on again with their toes. 
Thus their covetousness hath set them on high, even above 
the suns, moons, and stars of this world : but to what end? 
that they may be cast down to hell. 



Antichrist must be destroyed, because he stands in the 
way of the setting up of the kingdom of Christ in the 
world. Many princes were in Edom before there was a 
king in Israel ; and Christ has suffered antichrist to set up 
before him ; and he stands in Christ's way, and has so over- 
spread the world in all places with that which is directly 
contrary to him, that he cannot set up his kingdom until 
that which is antichrist's is tumbled down to the ground. 
Even as a man whose ground is full of thorns and briars 
and weeds, cannot sow in expectation of a crop, until he 

* Similar is the testimony of an eminent historian. u In every 
misapplication which the popes now (thirteenth century) made of their 
power, money was the object. Every new operation which they per- 
formed, was one of extortion ; and every new act of oppression was, 
on their part, a financial speculation." Planck. Y. 574. 

Says Luther, in his address to the German nobility, speaking of 
the pope, " He is a shepherd : yes, so far as you have money, and no 
farther." The above passage from Bunyan is altogether in the man- 
ner of Luther when describing the rapacity and avarice of Rome. 



412 RICHES OF BUNYAN. _ 

hath removed them. And these seeds has antichrist sown 
where the kingdom of Christ should stand. 

When God came from Egypt with his people to set up 
his kingdom in Canaan, he cast out the heathen before 
them, in order thereunto : " Thou hast brought a vine out 
of Egypt ; thou hast cast out the heathen and planted it." 
Wherefore antichrist must be removed and destroyed for 
this ; for antichrist is in flat opposition to Christ, as Tibni 
was to Omri ; wherefore antichrist must die. 

The reason is, because Christ's kingdom shall be peace- 
able, without molestation, and glorious without the fumes 
and fogs of antichristian darkness. Because also, as the 
world has seen the manner of the reign of antichrist, and 
how tyrannical and outrageous a kingdom his is ; so they 
shall see the reign of Christ by his word and Spirit in his 
people, how peaceable, how fruitful in blessedness and 
prosperity his kingdom is. And hence it is, that God pur- 
poses to bury antichrist before he sets glory in the land of 
the living ; as also you read in the book of Revelation, for 
there you find the kingdom of antichrist was destroyed 
before the new Jerusalem was set up. When men intend 
to build a new house, if in the place where the old one 
stood, they first pull down the old one and raze the founda- 
tion, and then they begin their new. Now God, as I said, 
will have his primitive church-state set up in this world, 
even where antichrist has set up ; wherefore, in order to 
this, antichrist must be pulled down, stick and stone ; and 
then they that live to see it, will behold the new Jerusa- 
lem come down from heaven, as a bride adorned for her 
husband. 



TIME OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 

The time of her fall is not certainly known by the 

saints, nor at all believed by her ; wherefore her plagues 

must come unlooked for by her. And as to the saints, 

their guesses as to the time of her ruin must needs be con- 



TIME OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 413 

jectural and uncertain. For her part, she shall say, and 
that when she stands where she must suddenly fall, " I 
shall be a lady for ever." 

Nor have I been without thought but that this mistake 
of the godly may become a snare to antichrist, and a trap 
to her upholders. For what can be a greater judgment, or 
more effectually harden the hearts of the wicked, than for 
them to behold that the predictions, prophecies, expecta- 
tions, and hopes of their enemies as to their ruin, should 
quite, as to the time, be frustrate and made void ? 

It is to be bewailed, namely, the forwardness of some 
in this matter who have predicted concerning the time 
of the downfall of antichrist, to the shame of them and 
their brethren ; nor will the wrong that such by their bold- 
ness have done to the church of God be ever repaired by 
them nor their works. But the judgments of God are a 
great deep ; and therefore who can tell, since the enemy 
of God would not be convinced by the power of truth and 
the virtuous lives of some, but that God might leave them 
to be snared, hardened, and emboldened to run upon their 
unavoidable destruction by the lies and lightness of others ? 
They begin to vaunt it already, and to say, Where is the 
word of the Lord as to this ? let it come now. But when 
Agag said, " Surely the bitterness of death is passed," then 
was the time for him to be hewn in pieces. 

I shall not therefore meddle with the times and seasons 
which the Father has put in his own power — no, though 
they, as to antichrist's ruin, are revealed — because by the 
Holy Ghost there is a challenge made, notwithstanding the 
time is set, and by the word referred to the man of wisdom 
to find it out if he can. 

If Sampson's riddle was so puzzling, what shall we 
think of this ? And though the angel hath intimated that 
this sealed matter shall be opened towards the time of the 
end, yet it is evident some have either been too hasty, or 
presumed too much upon their own abilities ; for I am 



414 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

sure they have missed the mark, hardened the heart of the 
enemy, stumbled the weak, and shamed them that love 
them. 



SIGNS OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 
Forbearance is no payment : God's patience is not a 
sign that he forgetteth to take vengeance, but rather that 
he waiteth till his own are come out of her, and until her 
iniquity is filled up ; for then he will execute the judgment 
written, and will remember the Babylonians and all their 
ways. 



Must antichrist be destroyed ? Then this should make 
us glad when we see the signs of his fall presenting them- 
selves to our view. Indeed, the signs of his fall, or those 
that forerun it, are terrible and amazing to behold. But 
what of that, since the wrinkles that are in their faces 
threaten not us but them ? A man is angry and will pun- 
ish ; yea, whets his sword and makes his rod ; and he 
speaks not a word, but blood, blood is in it. 

Indeed this should make them that are concerned in 
that anger afraid. But what terror is there in all this to 
those for the pleading of whose cause he is so angry with 
the other ? Nothing whereat the innocent should be 
afraid. 

Cold blasts in November are not received with such 
gentleness as are colder in March and April ; for that these 
last cold ones are but the farewell notes of a piercing win- 
ter ; they also bring with them the signs and tokens of a 
comfortable summer. "Why, the church is now at the 
rising of the year ; let then the blasts at present or to 
come be what they will, antichrist is surely drawing tow- 
ards his downfall. And though the devil, knowing what 
is to be done to him and to his kingdom, shall so blind his 
disciples and fright the godly, and do something like it 
upon the church of Christ, yet we should look through 



EFFECTS OF ANTICHRIST'S RUIN. 415 

these paper windows, and espy in all this that fear, yea, 
certain terrible judgments, are following him at the heels, 
by which not only the soul, spirit, and life of antichrist, 
but the body thereof — yea, body and soul and head— are 
quickly to go down thither, from whence they, as such, 
shall not arise asrain. Amen. 



HOPE OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 
Is antichrist to be destroyed ? then let us live in the 
expectation of it ; and let this be one of our songs in the 
house of our pilgrimage. God bids his people, while in 
Babylon, to let Jerusalem come into their mind ; and 
writes to them that were then in her, to acquaint them 
that he remembered them still, and would assuredly de- 
liver them from that place and state. And wherefore doth 
he thus, but to beget an expectation in them of their salva- 
tion and deliverance? The Lord is so pleased with the 
faith and expectation of his people as to this, that they 
seldom are herein concerned as they should, but he steps 
in with them and warms their hearts. The reason is, be- 
cause the faith of God's people as to the downfall of Bab- 
ylon, stands upon so sure a foundation as doth the salvation 
of their souls ; and that next to that, God is as much de- 
lighted in what he has purposed to do against Babylon, as 
in any thing else in the earth : and therefore, if you consider 
it well, the great and glorious promises that are to be ful- 
filled on earth, are to be fulfilled when antichrist is dead 
and buried. These dainties are too good even for his chil- 
dren to have, so long as this dog is by, lest he should 
snatch at the crumbs thereof ; wherefore they are reserved 
until he is gone. Jer. 19 : 31, 32. 



EFFECTS OF ANTICHRIST'S DESTRUCTION. 
It shall be done unto antichrist as he hath done to the 
church of God. As he hath made women childless, so 
shall he be made childless ; as he has made Zion sit upon 



416 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

the ground, so now must this wicked one come down to sit 
in the dust ; yea, as he has made many churches desola- 
tions, so now shall he be also made a desolation. Where- 
fore, whoso will find his body, must look for it in the side 
of the pit's mouth ; and whoso will find his friends and 
companions, must look for them there likewise. 

Now then Babylon is gone down, when all these things 
shall be fulfilled. And what remains now but to talk of 
her as folk use to do of them that are dead; for the day 
will come, that the church of God shall have no more of 
antichrist, Babylon, or the mother of harlots, than only the 
remembrance of her ; that there was such an enemy of God 
in the world ; that there was such a superstitious, idola- 
trous, bloody people in the world. Wherefore, the people 
that shall be born, that shall live to serve God in these 
happy days, shall see antichrist only in its ruins ; they 
shall, like the sparrows, the little robins, and the wren, sit 
and sing, and chirp one to another, while their eyes behold 
this dead hawk. Here, shall they say, did once the lion 
dwell ; and there once a dragon inhabited : here did they 
live that were the murderers of the saints ; and there 
another that did use to set his throat against the heavens : 
but now in the places where these ravenous creatures lay, 
grows grass, with reeds and rushes ; now their habitation 
is cursed; nettles grow, and so do thorns and brambles, 
where their palaces were wont to be. 



A day is coming when antichrist shall be unknown ; 
not seen nor felt by the church of God. There are men 
to be born who shall not know antichrist, but as they read 
in the word that such a thing has been. These shall talk 
of her as Israel's children's children were to talk of Pha- 
raoh — of his cruelty, of his tasks, of his pride, of the Red 
sea, and how he was drowned there. They shall talk of 
them as of those that have been long dead ; as of those who, 
for their horrible wickedness, are laid in the pit's mouth. 



RETURNING TO ANTICHRIST. 417 

This will be some of that sweet chat that the saints shall 
at their spare hours have, in time to come. 



There will be a strange alteration when antichrist is 
dead ; and that both in the church and in the world. The 
church and the members of it then shall wear the name 
of their God in their foreheads ; that is, they shall be bold 
in the profession of their King and God, yea, it shall be 
their glory to be godly, and carnal men shall praise them 
for it ; the praise of the whole earth shall the church of 
God be in those days. Now the world shall return and 
discern between the righteous and the wicked ; yea, they 
shall cleave to and countenance the people of God, being 
persuaded, as Laban was of Jacob, that the Lord will bless 
them for his people's sake. 

Now will be broken up those prophecies and promises 
that to this day lie as under lock and key, and that cannot 
be opened until they be fulfilled. Now the church of God 
shall read with great plainness the depths of providence, 
and the turnings and windings of all God's dark and intri- 
cate dispensations, through which she hath waded in the 
cloudy and dark day : now, I say, they shall see there was 
a harmony in them, and that, if one of them had been 
wanting, the work and way of her deliverance could not 
have been so full of the wisdom and justice and goodness of 
God. "Wherefore now will that song be sung with clearer 
notes than ever : " Great and marvellous are thy works, 
Lord God Almighty ; just and true are thy ways, thou King 
of saints. Who shall not fear thee, Lord, and glorify thy 
name ? for thou only art holy : for all nations shall come 
and worship before thee ; for thy judgments are made 
manifest." 



WARNING AGAINST A RETURN TO ANTICHRIST. 
Must antichrist be destroyed ? Then what mean they 
who were to appearance once come out, but now are going 
thither again. 

18* 



418 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

If it cost Lot's wife dear for but looking back, shall it 
not cost them much dearer that are going back, that are 
gone back again ; and that after the angel had flown 
through the midst of heaven, preaching the gospel to those 
that dwell on the earth ? 

They that received the mark of the beast at first, before 
this angel came forth, are, when compared with these, 
excusable. Wherefore they are not threatened with the 
smoking wrath that these are. 

You dread that which is like to become of them that 
will be so mad as to run into a house when fire is put to 
the gunpowder barrel in order to its blowing up. Why, 
thus do they, let their pretended cause be what it will, that 
are returning again to Babylon. Are her plagues pleasant 
or easy to be borne ? Or dost thou think that God is at 
play with thee, and that he threateneth but in jest ? Her 
plagues are death and mourning and famine and fire ; are 
these things to be overlooked ? And they that, as before 
hinted, shall receive the mark of the beast in their fore- 
head or in their hand, and shall worship him, they shall 
drink the wine of the wrath of God. And will this be a 
delightsome draught? 



FROM THE "INTRODUCTION TO THE HOLY CITY." 

My fourth word is to the lady of kingdoms, the well- 
favored harlot, the mistress of witchcrafts and the abomi- 
nations of the earth. 

I suppose I have nothing here that will either please 
your wanton eye, or go down with your voluptuous palate. 
Here is bread indeed, as also milk and meat; but here is 
neither paint to adorn thy wrinkled face, nor crutch to up- 
hold or undershore thy shaking, tottering, staggering king- 
dom of Rome ; but rather a certain presage of thy sudden 
and fearful final downfall, and of the exaltation of that holy 
matron whose chastity thou dost abhor, because by it she 
reproveth and condemneth thy lewd and stubborn life. 



THE WOODEN CROSS. 419 

Wherefore, lady, smell thou mayest of this, but taste thou 
wilt not. I know that both thy wanton eye, with all thy 
mincing brood that are intoxicated with thy cup and en- 
chanted with thy fornications, will, at the sight of so homely 
and plain a dish as this, cry, Fob. ! will snuff, put the branch 
to the nose, and say, Contemptible ! " But wisdom is justi- 
fied of all her children." " The virgin-daughter of Zion hath 
despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn ; Jerusalem hath 
shaken her head at thee ;" yea, her God hath smitten his 
hands at thy dishonest gains and freaks. " Rejoice ye with 
Jerusalem and be glad with her, all ye that love her ; re- 
joice for joy with her, all ye that mourn for her, that ye may 
suck and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations, 
and be delighted with the abundance of her glory." 



THE WOODEN CROSS. 

Some have thought the altar to mean the cross on 
which the body of Christ was crucified when he gave him- 
self an offering for sin ; but they are greatly deceived, for 
he also himself was the altar through which he offered 
himself; and this is one of the treasures of wisdom which 
are hid in him, and of which the world and antichrist are 
utterly ignorant. 

The altar is always greater than the gift, and since the 
gift was the body and soul of Christ — for so saith the 
scripture, " He gave himself for our sins" — the altar must 
be something else than a sorry bit of wood, or than the 
accursed tree. 

Wherefore I will say to such, as one wiser than Solo- 
mon said to the Jews when they superstitiously magnified 
the gift, in counting it more honorable than the altar, " Ye 
fools and blind ; for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar 
that sanctifieth the gift ?" 

If the altar be greater than the gift, and yet the gift so 
great a thing as the very humanity of Christ, can it — I will 
now direct my speech to the greatest fool — can that greater 



420 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

thing be the cross ? "Was the cross, the wooden cross, the 
cursed tree that some worship, greater than the gift, to wit, 
the sacrifice which Christ offered, when he gave himself 
for our sins ? idolatry ! blasphemy ! 

But what then was the altar ? 

The divine nature of Christ, that eternal Spirit, by 
and in the assistance of which " he offered himself without 
spot to God." " He through the eternal Spirit offered 
himself." 

And it must be this, because, as was said, the altar is 
greater than the gift ; but there is nothing but Christ's di- 
vine nature greater than his human. To be sure, a sorry 
bit of wood, a tree, the stock of a tree, is not. 

It must be this, because the Scripture says plainly, the 
altar sanctifies the gift, that is, puts worth and virtue into 
it. But was it the tree, or the godhead of Christ, that put 
virtue and efficacy into this sacrifice that he offered to God 
for us ? If thou canst but count thy fingers, judge. 

Let the tree then be the tree, the sacrifice the sacrifice, 
and the altar the altar ; and let men have a care how, in 
their worship, they make altars upon which, as they pre- 
tend, they offer the body of Christ ; and let them leave 
off foolishly to doat upon wood and the works of their 
hands. 



DEATH OF THE SINNER. 421 



XXIV. DEATH. 



Seeing man was taken from the ground, he is neither 
God nor angel, but a poor earthen vessel, such as God can 
easily knock in pieces and cause to return to the ground 
again. 



And the time of need is the day of death, when I am 
to pack up all to be gone from hence, the way of all the 
earth. Now the greatest trial is come, except that of the 
day of judgment. Now a man is to be stripped of all but 
that which cannot be shaken. Now a man grows near the 
borders of eternity. Now he begins to see into the skirts 
of the next world. Now death is death, and the grave the 
grave indeed. Now he begins to see what it is for soul and 
body to part, and what to go and appear before God. Now 
the dark entry and the thoughts of what is in the way from 
a death-bed to the gate of the holy heaven, come nearer the 
heart than when health and prosperity do compass a man 
about. 



Some men are cut off like the tops of the ears of corn, 
and some are even nipped by death in the very bud of their 
spring ; but the safety is when a man is ripe, and shall be 
gathered to his grave as a shock of corn to the. barn in its 
season. 



DEATH OF THE SINNEH. 
Death is the axe which God often useth, therewith to 
take the barren fig-tree out of the vineyard, out of a pro- 
fession, and also out of the world at once. But this axe is 
now new-ground ; it cometh well edged to the roots of this 
barren fig-tree. It hath been whetted by sin, by the law, 
and by a formal profession, and therefore must and will 
make deep gashes, not only in the natural life, but in the 



422 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

heart and conscience also of this professor. The wages of 
sin is death, the sting of death is sin. Wherefore, death 
comes not to this man as he doth to saints, muzzled, or 
without his sting, but with open mouth, in all his strength ; 
yea, he sends his first-born, which is guilt, to devour his 
strength and to bring him to the king of terrors. 



The dark entry which the barren professor is to go 
through will be a sore amazement to him, for "fears shall 
be in the way," yea, terrors will take hold on him when he 
shall see the yawning jaws of death gape upon him, and 
the doors of the shadow of death open to give him passage 
out of the w T orld. Now, who will meet me in this dark 
entry ? How shall I pass through this dark entry into an- 
other world ? 



There is no judgment to be made by a quiet death of 
the eternal state of him that so dieth. Suppose one man 
should die quietly, another should die suddenly, and a third 
should die under great consternation of spirit ; no man can 
judge of their eternal condition by the manner of any of 
these kinds of death. He that dies quietly, suddenly, or 
under consternation of spirit, may go to heaven, or may go 
to hell ; no man can tell whither a man goes by any such 
manner of death. The judgment, therefore, that we make 
of the eternal condition of man, must be gathered from 
another consideration, to wit, Did the man die in his sins ? 
Did he die in unbelief? Did he die before he was born 
again? He that is a good man, a man that hath faith and 
holiness, a lover and worshipper of God by Christ, accord- 
ing to his word, may die in consternation of spirit ; for 
Satan will not be wanting to assault good men upon their 
death-bed. But they are secured by the word and power 
of God, yea, and are also helped, though with much agony 
of spirit, to exercise themselves in faith and prayer; the 
which he that dieth in despair can by no means do. 



THE CHRISTIAN WISHING TO DEPART. 423 

DEATH OF THE CHRISTIAN. 
Let dissolution come when it will, it can do the Chris- 
tian no harm, for it will be but only a passage out of a 
prison into a palace ; out of a sea of troubles into a haven 
of rest ; out of a crowd of enemies to an innumerable com- 
pany of true, loving, and faithful friends ; out of shame, 
reproach, and contempt, into exceeding great and eternal 
glory. 



Another improvement of Christ's death for us was this : 
by it he slew for us our infernal foes ; by it he abolished 
death ; by death he destroyed him that had the power of 
death ; by death he took away the sting of death ; by death 
he made death a pleasant sleep to saints, and the grave for 
a while an easy house and home for the body. 



We change our drossy dust for gold, 
From death, to life we fly : 

"We let go shadows, and take hold 
Of immortality. 



Blood takes away the guilt ; inherent grace weakens 
the filth ; but the grave is the place, at the mouth of which 
sin and the saved must have a perfect and final parting. 
Not that the grave of itself is of a sin-purging quality, but 
God will follow Satan home to his own door, for the grave 
is the door or gate of hell, and will there, where the devil 
thought to have swallowed us up, even there by the power 
of his mercy, make us shine like the sun and look like 
angels. 



THE CHRISTIAN WISHING- TO DEPART. 

"I have a desire to depart, and to be with Christ." 

The strength of this desire is such that it is ready, so far 

forth as it can, to dissolve that sweet knot of union that is 

betwixt body and soul — a knot more dear to a reasonable 



424 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

creature than that can be which is betwixt wife and hus- 
band, parent and child, or a man and his estate ; for even 
all that a man hath will he give for his life, and to keep 
body and soul firmly knit together. But now, when this 
desire comes, this silver cord is loosed, is loosed by consent. 
This desire delightfully grants to him that comes to dis- 
solve this union, leave to do it. "We are confident and 
willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present 
with the Lord." 

The strength of this desire shows itself in this, that it 
is willing to grapple with the king of terrors, rather than 
to be detained from that sweet communion which the soul 
looks for when it comes into the place where its Lord is. 
Death is not to be desired for itself; the apostle chose 
rather to be clothed upon with his house which is from 
heaven, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. 

But yet rather than he would be absent from the Lord, 
he was willing to be absent from the body. Death, in the 
very thought of it, is grievous to flesh and blood ; and 
nothing can so master it in our apprehensions as that by 
which we attain to these desires. These desires do deal 
with death, as Jacob's love to Rachel dealt with the seven 
long years which he was to serve for her. It made them 
seem few, or but a little time ; so do these desires deal with 
death itself. They make it seem little, nay, a servant, nay, 
a privilege, because by that a man may come to enjoy the 
presence of his beloved Lord. I have a desire to depart, to 
go from the world and relations, to go from my body, that 
great piece of myself — I have a desire to venture the tugs 
and pains, and the harsh handling of the king of terrors, so 
I may be with Jesus Christ. These are the desires of the 
righteous. 

Are not these therefore strong desires ? Is there not life 
and mettle in them ? Have they not in them power to loose 
the bands of nature, and to harden the soul against sor- 
row ? Flow they not, think you, from faith of the finest 



THE CHRISTIAN WISHING- TO DEPART. 425 

sort, and are they not bred in the bosom of a truly morti- 
fied soul ? Are these the effect of a purblind spirit ? Are 
they not rather the fruits of an eagle-eyed confidence ? 
Oh, these desires ! they are peculiar to the righteous. 

Christ in glory is worth the being with. If the man 
out of whom the Lord Jesus cast a legion, prayed that he 
might be with him notwithstanding all the trials that at- 
tended him in this life, how can it be but that a righteous 
man must desire to be with him, now he is in glory ? 

To see Jesus Christ, to see him as he is, to see him as 
he is in glory, is a sight that is worth going from relations 
and out of the body and through the jaws of death to see ; 
for this is to see him Head over all, to see him possessed of 
heaven for his church, to see him preparing mansion-houses 
for those his poor ones that are now by his enemies kicked 
to and fro like footballs in the world : and is not this a 
blessed sight ? 

Secondly, I have a desire to be with him, to see myself 
with him ; this is more blessed still : for a man to see him- 
self in glory, this is a sight worth seeing. 

Sometimes I look upon myself and say, Where am I 
now ? and do quickly return answer to myself again, Why, 
I am in an evil world, a great way from heaven, in a sin- 
ful body, among devils and wicked men ; sometimes be- 
nighted, sometimes beguiled, sometimes fearing, sometimes 
hoping, sometimes breathing, sometimes dying. But then 
I turn the tables, and say, But where shall I be shortly ? 
Where shall I see myself anon, after a few more times have 
passed over me ? And when I can but answer this ques- 
tion thus : I shall see myself with Jesus Christ; this yields 
glory, even glory to one's spirit now. 

Thirdly, I have a desire to be with Christ : there the 
spirits of the just are perfected ; there the spirits of the 
righteous are as full as they can hold. A sight of Jesus in 
the word ; some know how it will change them from glory 
to glory. But how then shall we be changed and filled, 



426 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

when we shall see him as he is ? " When he shall appear, 
we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." 

Moses and Elias appeared to Peter and James and John, 
at the transfiguration of Christ, " in glory." How so? 
Why, they had been in the heavens, and came thence with 
some of the glories of heaven upon them. Gild a bit of 
wood, yea, gild it seven times over, and it must not be 
compared, in difference from wood which is not gilt, with 
the soul that but a little while has been dipt in glory. 

Glory is a strange thing to men that are on this side of 
heaven ; it is that which eye hath not seen nor ear heard, 
nor hath entered into the heart of man : only the Christian 
has a word and Spirit that at times give a little of the 
glimmering thereof unto him. 

But Oh, when he is in the Spirit and sees in the Spirit, 
do you think his tongue can tell ? But if the sight of 
heaven at so vast a distance is so excellent a prospect, what 
will it be when one is in it ? 

No marvel, then, if the desires of the righteous are to 
be with Christ. 



There is a man upon a bed of languishing ; but Oh, he 
dares not die, for all is not as he would have it betwixt 
God and his poor soul ; and many a night he lies thus in 
great horror of mind ; but do you think that he doth not 
desire to depart ? Yes, yes ; he also waits and cries to God 
to set his desires at liberty. At last the visitor comes and 
sets his soul at ease, by persuading him that he belongs to 
God ; and what then ? Oh, Now let me die ; welcome 
death ! 



THE DYING- CHRISTIAN. 

When men are faithful to God in this world, to do the 
work he hath appointed for them, by this means a dying 
bed is made easier. 

1. By reason of that present peace such shall have, 
even in their time of languishing. 



DEATH OF MR. BADMAN'S WIFE. 427 

2. By reason of the good company such shall have at 
their departure. The angels of heaven shall wait upon 
them, as they did upon the blessed Lazarus, to carry them 
into Abraham's bosom. I know all that goto paradise are 
by these holy ones conducted thither ; but yet, for all that, 
such as die under the clouds for unchristian walking with 
God, may meet with darkness in that day — may go heavily 
hence, notwithstanding that ; yea, their bed may be as 
uncomfortable to them as ii they lay upon nothing but the 
cords, and their departing from it, as to appearance, more 
uncomfortable by far. 

But as for those who have been faithful to their God, 
they shall see before them ; shall know their tabernacle 
shall be in peace ; " the everlasting gates shall be opened 
unto them :" in all which from earth they shall see the 
glory of heaven. 



DEATH OF MR. BADMAN'S WIFE. 

Attentive. "And how did his good wife take it when 
she saw that he had no amendment, but that he returned 
to his old courses again?" 

Wiseman. "Why, it broke her heart; it was a worse 
disappointment to her than the cheat that he gave her in 
marriage ; at least she laid it more to heart, and could not 
so well grapple with it. You must think that she had put 
up many a prayer to God for him before, even all the time 
that he had carried it so badly to her ; and now when he was 
so affrighted in his sickness, and so desirous that he might 
live and mend, poor woman, she thought that the time 
was come for God to answer her prayers ; nay, she did not 
fail with gladness to whisper out amongst her friends that 
it was so. But when she saw herself disappointed by her 
husband turning rebel again, she could not stand up under 
it, but fell into a languishing distemper, and in a few 
weeks gave up the ghost." 

Attentive " Pray how did she die ?" 



428 RICHES OF BUNYAff. 

Wiseman. "Die! she died bravely; full of comfort in 
the faith of her interest in Christ, and by him in the world 
to come. She had many brave expressions in her sickness, 
and gave to those that came to visit her many signs of her 
salvation. The thoughts of the grave, especially of her 
rising again, were sweet thoughts to her. She would long 
for death, because she knew it would be her friend. She 
expressed herself like one that was making herself ready 
to go to meet her bridegroom. * Now,' said she, * I am 
going to rest from my sorrows, my sighs, my tears, my 
mournings, and complaints: I have heretofore longed to 
be among the saints, but might by no means be suffered 
to go ; but now I am going, and no man can stop me, to 
the great meeting, \ to the general assembly and church of 
the first-born which are written in heaven.' There I shall 
have my heart's desire ; there I shall worship without 
temptation or other impediment ; there I shall see the 
face of my Jesus whom I have loved, whom I have served, 
and who now I know will save my soul. I have prayed 
often for my husband that he might be converted, but there 
has been no answer of God in that matter. Are my pray- 
ers lost ; are they forgotten ; are they thrown over the 
bar ? No ; they are hanged upon the horns of the golden 
altar, and I must have the benefit of them myself that 
moment that I shall enter into the gates, in at which the 
righteous nation that keepeth truth shall enter : I say, I 
shall have the benefit of them. I can say as holy David — 
I say, I can say of my husband as he could of his enemies, 
' As for me, when they were sick, my clothing was of sack- 
cloth ; I humbled my soul with fasting, and my prayer re- 
turned into my bosom.' My prayers are not lost, my tears 
are yet in God's bottle ; I would have had a crown and 
glory for my husband, and for those of my children that 
follow his steps ; but so far as I can see yet, I must rest in 
the hope of having all myself 

" When she drew near her end she called for her hus- 



DEATH OF MR. BADMAN'S WIFE. 429 

band, and when he was come to her, she told him that now 
he and she must part ; and, said she, ' God knows, and 
thou shalt know, that I have been a loving, faithful wife 
unto thee ; and as for all the abuses that I have received 
at thy hand, those I freely and heartily forgive, and still 
shall pray for thy conversion, even as long as I breathe in 
this world. But, husband, I am going thither where no 
bad man shall come ; and if thou dost not turn, thou wilt 
never see me more with comfort. Let not my plain words 
offend thee ; I am thy dying wife, and of my faithfulness 
to thee would leave this exhortation with thee : Break off 
thy sins, fly to God for mercy while mercy's gate stands 
open : remember that the day is coming when thou, though 
now lusty and well, must lie at the gates of death, as I do ; 
and what wilt thou then do, if thou shalt be found with 
a naked soul to meet the cherubims with their flaming 
swords ? Yea, what wilt thou then do if death and hell 
shall come to visit thee, and thou in thy sins and under the 
curse of the law ?' 

" When she saw that she was not regarded, she fetched 
a deep sigh and lay still. So he went down; and then she 
called for her children, and began to talk to them. And 
first she spoke to those that were rude, and told them the 
danger of dying before they had grace in their hearts. She 
told them also, that death might be nearer than they were 
aware of; and bid them look, when they went through the 
churchyard again, if there were not little graves there. 
' And ah, children,' said she, 'will it not be dreadful to you, 
if we only shall meet at the day of judgment, and then part 
again and never see each other more V And with that she 
wept ; the children also wept. So she held on her dis- 
course : ' Children,' said she, ' I am going from you. I am 
froin^ to Jesus Christ ; and with him there is neither sor- 

CO ' 

row nor sighing, nor pain nor tears, nor death : thither 
would I have you go also ; but I can neither carry you nor 
fetch you thither. But if you shall turn from your sins to 



430 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

God, and shall beg mercy at his hands by Jesus Christ, 
you shall follow me, and shall, when you die, come to the 
place where I am going, that blessed place of rest ; and 
then we shall be for ever together, beholding the face of our 
Redeemer, to our mutual and eternal joy.' So she bade 
them remember the words of a dying mother when she was 
cold in her grave, and themselves w r ere hot in their sins, if 
perhaps her words might put a check to their vice, and they 
might remember and turn to God. 

" Then they all went down but her darling, to wit, the 
child that she had most love for, because it followed her 
ways. So she addressed herself to that : ' Come to me,' 
said she, 'my sweet child, thou art the child of my joy ; I 
have lived to see thee a servant of God ; thou shalt have 
eternal life. I, my sweetheart, shall go before, and thou 
shalt follow after, if thou shalt hold the beginning of thy 
confidence steadfast to the end. When I am gone, do thou 
still remember my words. Love thy Bible, follow my 
ministers, deny ungodliness still, and if troublesome times 
shall come, set a higher price upon Christ, his word and 
ways, and the testimony of a good conscience, than upon 
all the world besides ; carry it kindly and dutifully to thy 
father, but chose none of his ways. 

" ' I would have thee also, my dear child, to love thy 
brothers and sisters, but learn none of their naughty tricks ; 
1 Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, 
but rather reprove them.' Thou hast grace ; they have 
none. Do thou therefore beautify the way of salvation 
before their eyes, by a godly life and conversation conform- 
able to the revealed will of God, that thy brothers and 
sisters may see and be the more pleased with the good 
ways of the Lord.' 

" Thus she talked to her children and gave them coun- 
sel ; and after she had talked to this a little longer, she 
kissed it and bid it go down. 

" Well, in short, her time drew on, and the day that 



DEATH OF STANDFAST. 431 

she must die. So she died with a soul full of grace, a 
heart full of comfort, and by her death ended a life of 
trouble." 



DEATH OF STANDFAST. 

When Mr. Standfast had thus set things in order, and 
the time being come for him to haste him away, he went 
down to the river. Now there was a great calm at that 
time in the river ; wherefore Mr. Standfast, when he was 
about half way in, stood a while and talked to his com- 
panions that had waited upon him thither : and he said, 
" This river has been a terror to many ; yea, the thoughts 
of it also have often frightened me : now, methinks, I 
stand easy ; my foot is fixed upon that on which the feet 
of the priests that bare the ark of the covenant stood, while 
Israel went over this Jordan. 

" The waters indeed are to the palate bitter and to the 
stomach cold ; yet the thoughts of what I am going to, and 
of the convoy that waits for me on the other side, doth lie 
as a glowing coal at my heart. I see myself now at the 
end of my journey ; my toilsome days are ended. I am 
going to see that head that was crowned with thorns, and 
that face that was spit upon for me. I have formerly lived 
by hearsay and faith, but now I go where I shall live by 
sight, and shall be with him in whose company I delight 
myself. I have loved to hear my Lord spoken of; and 
whenever I have seen the print of his shoe in the earth, 
there I have coveted to set my foot too. His name has been 
to me as a civet-box, yea, sweeter than all perfumes. His 
voice to me has been most sweet, and his countenance I 
have more desired than they that have most desired the 
light of the sun. His words I did use to gather for my 
food, and for antidotes against my faintings. He has held 
me, and hath kept me from mine iniquities, yea, my steps 
have been strengthened in his way." 

Now while he was thus in discourse, his countenance 



432 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

changed ; his " strong man bowed under him ;" and after he 
had said, " Take me, for I am come unto thee," he ceased 
to be seen of them. 

But glorious it was to see how the open region was 
filled with horses and chariots, with trumpeters and pipers, 
with singers and players on stringed instruments, to wel- 
come the pilgrims as they went up, and followed one 
another in at the beautiful gate of the city. 



DEATH OF CHRISTIAN AND HOPEFUL. 

They then addressed themselves to the water, and en- 
tering, Christian began to sink, and crying out to his good 
friend Hopeful, he said, " I sink in deep waters ; billows go 
over my head, all his waves go over me." 

Then said the other, " Be of good cheer, my brother ; I 
feel the bottom, and it is good." 

Then said Christian, " Ah, my friend, the sorrow of 
death hath compassed me abo^t. I shall not see the land 
that flows with milk and honey." And with that a great 
darkness and horror fell upon Christian, so that he could 
not see before him ; also he in a great measure lost his 
senses, so that he could neither remember nor orderly talk 
of any of those sweet refreshments that he had met with 
in the way of his pilgrimage. But all the words that he 
spake still tended to discover that he had horror of mind, 
and heart-fears that he should die in that river and never 
obtain entrance in at the gate. 

Here also, as they that stood by perceived, he was much 
in troublesome thoughts of the sins that he had committed 
both since and before he began to be a pilgrim. It was 
also observed that he was troubled with apparitions of hob- 
goblins and evil spirits ; for ever and anon he would inti- 
mate so much by words. 

Hopeful therefore here had much ado to keep his 
brother's head above water ; yea, sometimes he would be 
quite gone down, and then, ere a while, he would rise up 



DEATH OF CHRISTIAN AND HOPEFUL. 433 

again half dead. Hopeful did also endeavor to comfort 
him, saying, " Brother, I see the gate, and men standing by 
to receive us ; but Christian would answer, "It is you, it 
is you they wait for ; you have been hopeful ever since I 
knew you." 

"And so have you," said he to Christian. 

"Ah, brother," said he, "surely if I was right, he 
would now arise to help me ; but for my sins he hath 
brought me into the snare, and hath left me." 

Then said Hopeful, " My brother, you have quite for- 
got the text, where it is said of the wicked, ' There are no 
bands in their death, but their strength is firm : they are 
not troubled as other men, neither are they plagued like 
other men.' These troubles and distresses that you go 
through in these waters, are no sign that God hath for- 
saken you, but are sent to try you whether you will call to 
mind that which heretofore you have received of his good- 
ness, and live upon him in your distresses." 

Then I saw in my dream that Christian was in a muse 
a while. To whom also Hopeful added these words : "Be 
of good cheer ; Jesus Christ maketh thee whole." 

And with that Christian broke out with a loud voice, 
" Oh, I see him again, and he tells me, 'When thou passest 
through the waters, I will be with thee ; and through the 
rivers, they shall not overflow thee.' " 

Then they both took courage, and the enemy was after 
that as still as a stone until they were gone over. Chris- 
tian therefore presently found ground to stand upon, and so 
it followed that the rest of the river was but shallow ; thus 
they got over. 

Now upon the bank of the river, on the other side, they 
saw the two shining men again, who there waited for them. 
"Wherefore, being come out of the river, they saluted them, 
saying, "We are ministering spirits, sent forth to minister 
to those that shall be heirs of salvation." Thus they went 
along towards the gate. 

Riches of Buoyan. 1 Q 



4-34 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

BTJNYAN'S DEATH. 

FROM THE FIRST BIOGRAPHY OF BUNYAN. 

" He comforted those that wept about him, exhorting 
them to trust in God, and pray to him for mercy and for- 
giveness of their sins ; telling them what a glorious ex- 
change it would be, to leave the troubles and cares of a 
wretched mortality to live with Christ for ever, with peace 
and joy inexpressible ; expounding to them the comfortable 
scriptures by which they were to hope and assuredly come 
unto a blessed resurrection in the last day. He desired some 
to pray with him, and he joined with them in prayer; and 
his last words, after he had struggled with a languishing 
disease, were these : ' "Weep not for me, but for yourselves. 
I go to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will, 
through the mediation of his blessed Son, receive me, 
though a sinner ; where I hope we ere long shall meet to 
sing the new song, and remain everlastingly happy, world 
without end.' " 



XXY. THE RESURRECTION. 

The doctrine of the resurrection, however questioned 
by heretics and erroneous persons, yet is such a truth, that 
almost all the holy scriptures of God point at and centre 
in it. 



There is a poor dry and wrinkled kernel cast into the 
ground ; and there it lieth, swelleth, breaketh, and, one 
would think, perisheth. But behold, it receiveth life, it 
chippeth, it putteth forth a blade, and groweth into a stalk. 
There also appeareth an ear ; it also sweetly blossoms, with 
a full kernel in the ear. It is the same wheat ; yet behold 
how the fashion doth differ from what was sown. And 
our bran will be left behind, when we rise again. The 
body ariseth, as to the nature of it, the self-same nature ; 



THE RESURRECTION. 435 

but as to the manner of it, how far transcendent ! The 
glory of the terrestrial is one, and the glory of the celestial 
is another. 



"It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power." At our 
first appearance, the world will tremble. Behold, the gates 
of death and the bars of the grave are now carried away 
on our shoulders, as Sampson carried away the gates of the 
city. Death quaketh, and destruction falleth down dead 
at our feet. "What then can stand before us ? We shall 
then carry such grace, majesty, terror, and commanding 
power in our souls, that our countenances shall be as light- 
ning. Then shall death be swallowed up of victory. 



Glory is the sweetness, comeliness, purity, and perfec- 
tion of a thing. The light is the glory of the sun, strength 
is the glory of youth, and gray hairs are the glory of old age. 
That is, it is the excellency of these things and that which 
makes them shine. Therefore to arise in glory, it is to 
arise in all the beauty and utmost completeness that is pos- 
sible for a human creature to possess, in all its features and 
members inconceivably beautiful. Sin and corruption have 
made mad work in our bodies as well as in our souls ; 'tis 
sin commonly that is the cause of all that deformity and 
ill-favoredness that now cleaveth to us, and that rendereth 
us so dishonorable at our death. But now at our rising, we 
shall be raised incorruptible ; we shall appear in such per- 
fection that all the beauty and comeliness, sweetness and 
amiableness that hath at any time been in this world, it 
shall be swallowed up a thousand times told with this 



The body when it ariseth will be so swallowed up of 
life and immortality, that it will be as if it had lost its own 
human nature. You know that things which are can- 
died by the art of the apothecary, are so swallowed up 



436 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

with, the sweetness and virtue of that in which they are 
candied, that they are now as though they had no other 
nature than that in which they are boiled. Just thus, at 
the last day, it will be with our bodies. We shall be so 
candied by being swallowed up of life, that we shall be as 
if we were all spirit ; when in truth, it is but this body 
that is swallowed up of life. 



The body is also gathered up into glory, but not simply 
for its own sake, or because it is capable of itself to know 
and understand the glories of its Maker, but that it has 
been a companion with the soul in this world, and has also 
been its house, its mantle, its cabinet, and tabernacle here : 
it has also been that by which, the soul hath acted, in 
which it hath, wrought, and by which its excellent appear- 
ances have been manifested ; and it shall also there be its 
copartner and sharer in its glory. 



In this world the soul of the regenerate is a gracious 
soul; and in that world it shall be a glorious one. In this 
world the body was conformable to the soul as it was gra- 
cious, and in that world it shall be conformable to it as it 
is glorious. Yea, it shall have an additional glory to adorn 
and make it yet the more capable of being serviceable to and 
with the soul in its great acts before God in eternal glory. 



If a man receive the mercy of the resurrection of the 
body, what a bundle of mercies will be received as wrapt 
up in that. He will receive perfection, immortality, heaven, 
and glory. And what is folded up in these things, who 
can tell ? 



As to the manner of the change of the body in its 
rising, this similitude also doth fitly suit : as, 1 . It is sown 
a dead corn, it is raised a living one. 2. It is sown dry, and 
without comeliness ; it riseth green and beautiful. 3. It 



THE RESURRECTION. 437 

is sown a siDgle corn, it riseth a full ear. 4. It is sown in 
the husk, but in its rising it leaveth that husk behind it. 

Further, though the kernel thus die, be buried, and 
meet with all this change in these things, yet none of them 
can cause the nature of the kernel to cease ; it is wheat 
still. "Wheat was sown, and wheat arises ; only it was 
sown dead, dry, and barren wheat, and riseth living, beau- 
tiful, and fruitful wheat. "God giveth it a body as it 
pleaseth him ; but to every seed his own body." 



All the glory that a glorified soul can help this body to, 
it at this day shall enjoy. That soul that has been these 
hundreds or thousands of years in the heavens, in the bo- 
som of Christ, it shall in a moment come spangling into 
the body again, and inhabit every member and vein of the 
body, as it did before its departure. That Spirit of G-od 
also, that took its leave of the body when it went to the 
grave, shall now in all perfection dwell in the body again. 
I tell you, the body at this day will shine brighter than the 
face of Moses or Stephen, even as bright as the sun, the 
stars and angels. " When Christ who is our life shall ap- 
pear, we shall appear with him in glory." 



Christ has showed us what our body at the resurrec- 
tion shall be, by showing us in his word what his body was 
at and after his resurrection. "We read that his body after 
he was risen from the dead, though it yet retained the very 
same flesh and bones that did hang upon the cross, yet how 
angelical was it at all times, upon all occasions ! He could 
come in to his disciples with that very body, when the doors 
were shut upon them. He could at pleasure, to their 
amazement, appear in the twinkling of an eye in the midst 
of them. He could be visible and invisible, as he pleased, 
when he sat at meat with them. In a word, he could pass 
and repass, ascend and descend in that body with far more 
pleasure and ease than the bird by the art of her wing. 



438 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

Now I say, as we have in this world borne the image 
of our first father ; so at that day we shall have the image 
of Jesus Christ, and be as he is. 1 Cor. 15 : 49. 

To mount up to heaven, and to~ descend again with 
pleasure, shall with us in that day be ordinary. If there 
were ten thousand bars of iron, or walls of brass, to sep- 
arate between us and our pleasure and desire at that day, 
they should as easily be pierced by us as is the cobweb, or 
as air by the beams of the sun. And the reason is, be- 
cause to the Spirit, wherewith we shall be inconceivably 
filled at that day, nothing is impossible ; and the working 
of it at that day shall be in such nature and measure as to 
swallow up ail impossibilities. "Who shall change our 
vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious 
body" — now mark — "according to the working whereby 
he is able even to subdue all things unto himself." 

Nay further, we do not only see what operation the 
Spirit will have in our body by the carriage of Christ after 
his resurrection, but even by many a saint before his death. 
The Spirit used to catch Elijah away, no man could tell 
whither. It carried Ezekiel hither and thither. It carried 
Christ from the top of the pinnacle of the temple into Gal- 
ilee ; through it he walked on the sea. The Spirit caught 
away Philip from the eunuch, and carried him as far as 
Azotus. 

Thus the great God has given us a taste of the power 
and glory that are in himself, and how easily they will help 
us, by possessing us at the resurrection, to act and to do 
like angels ; as Christ saith, " They that shall be counted 
worthy of that world and of the resurrection from the 
dead, they shall not die, but be equal to the angels." 



SALVATION COMPLETE AT THE RE SURRE CTION. 
"Now we shall see him," to wit, Christ in his glory. 
Not by revelation only, as we do now, but then face to 
(ace ; and he will have us with him to this very end. 



RESURRECTION IN THE SPIRIT. 439 

Though John was in the Spirit when he had the vision of 
Christ, yet it made him fall at his feet as dead ; and also 
turned Daniel's beauty into corruption, it was so glorious 
and so overweighing a glory that he appeared in. But we 
shall at the day of our resurrection be so furnished, that 
we shall with the eagle be able to look upon the sun in 
his strength. "We shall then "see Him as he is," who now 
is in the light that no eye hath seen, nor any man can see 
till that day. 

Now we shall see into all things ; there shall not be 
any thing hid from us. For the Spirit, with which we 
shall in every cranny of soul and body be filled, " search- 
eth all things, yea, the deep things of God." We see what 
strange things have been known by the prophets and saints 
of God ; and that when they knew but in part. Abraham 
could by it tell to a day how long his seed should be under 
persecution in Egypt. Elisha by it could tell what was 
done in the king of Assyria's bedchamber. Abijah by this 
could know Jeroboam's wife so soon as, yea, before her 
feet entered within his door, though he saw her not. The 
prophet of Judah could tell by this what God would do to 
Bethel for the idolatry there committed, and could also 
point out the man by name that should do the execution, 
long before he was born. 

What shall I say? Enoch by it could tell what should 
be done at the end of the world. How did the prophets 
circumstantially prophesy of Christ's birth, his death, his 
burial, of their giving him gall and vinegar, of their part- 
ing his raiment and piercing his hands and feet, of his 
riding on an ass also. All this they saw when they spake 
of him. Peter also, though half asleep, could at the very 
first word call Moses and Elias by their names, when they 
appeared to Christ in the holy mount. He is very ignorant 
of the operation of the Spirit that scrupleth these things. 

BuJ now, I say, if these things have been done, seen, 
and known by spiritual men while their knowledge has 



440 EICHES OF BUNYAN. 

been "but "in, part," how shall we know, see, and discern, 
when "that which is perfect is come !" which will be at 
the resurrection : " It is raised a spiritual body." 



Paul said to the Philippians that he was confident that 
he who had begun a good work in them, would perform it 
until "the day of Christ." Which day of Christ was not 
the day of their conversion, for that day w^as past with 
them already, they were now the children of God ; but this 
day of Christ is the same which in other places is called 
the day when he shall come with the sound of the last 
trump to raise the dead. For you must know that the 
work of salvation is not at an end with them that are now 
in heaven ; no, nor ever will be until their bodies be raised 
again. God has made our bodies the members of Christ, 
and God does not count us thoroughly saved, until our bod- 
ies be as well redeemed and ransomed out of the grave and 
death, as our soul from the curse of the law and dominion 
of sin. 

Though God's saints have felt the power of much of his 
grace, and have had many a secret word fulfilled on them, 
yet one word will be unfulfilled on their particular person, 
so long as the grave can shut her mouth upon them. But 
when the gates of death do open before them, and the bars 
of the grave do fall asunder, then shall be brought to pass 
that saying which is written, "Death is swallowed up of 
victory." And then will they hear that most pleasant 
voice, "Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for 
thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast 
forth her dead." 



The body is no such ridiculous thing in the account of 
Christ as it was in the account of the Sadducees. "The 
body is not for fornication, but for the Lord, and the Lord 
for the body ;" and that not only in this world, but in that 
which is to come. 



THE SAINTS JUDG-ED. 441 



XXVI. THE JUDGMENT. 

On my heart, it is in vain now to dissemble, or to hide, 
or to lessen transgressions ; for there is a judgment to come, 
a day in which God will judge the secrets of men by his 
Son. 



THE SAINTS JUDGED. 

When the saints are raised, they must give an account 
of all things that they have done while they were in the 
world, of all things " whether they be good or bad." 

1. Of all their bad. But mark, not under the consid- 
eration of vagabond slaves and sinners, but as sons, stew- 
ards, and servants of the Lord Jesus. "We must all stand 
before the judgment-seat of Christ ;" we saints; "for it is 
written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to 
me, and every tongue shall confess to God." 

It is true, God loveth his people ; but yet he lovetli not 
their sins, nor any thing they do, though with the greatest 
zeal for him, if it be contrary to his word. Wherefore, as 
truly as God will give a reward to his saints and children, 
for all that they have indeed well done, so truly will he 
at this day distinguish their good and bad ; and when both 
are manifest by the righteous judgment of God, he will 
burn up their bad, with all their labor and travail in it, for 
ever. He can tell how to save his people, and yet take 
vengeance on their inventions. 

That is an observable place, 1 Cor. 3 : 12-15: "If 
any man build upon this foundation, (Christ,) gold, silver, 
precious-stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man's work shall 
be manifest ; for the day shall declare it ; because it shall 
be revealed by fire, and the fire shall try every man's work 
of what sort it is. If any man's work shall abide that he 
hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any 

19* 



442 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

man's work shall be burned, that man shall suffer loss, but 
he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire." 

I am persuaded that there are many things done by the 
best of saints, which then they will gladly disown and be 
ashamed of; yea, they have and do still do this with great 
devotion. In many things now, we offend all ; and then 
we shall see the many offences we have committed, and 
shall ourselves judge them as they are. 

But yet take notice, that in this day when the saints are 
thus accounting for their evil before their Saviour and Judge, 
they shall not then, as now at the remembrance and con- 
fession of sin, be filled with that guilt, confusion, and shame, 
that now, through the weakness of faith, attend their souls : 
neither shall they in the least be grieved or offended that 
God has, before the angels and the rest of their holy breth- 
ren, laid open to a tittle their infirmities from the least and 
first to the biggest and last. 

For the God to whom they confess all, they will now 
more perfectly than ever see he doth love them and free 
them from all, even when and before they confess and ac- 
knowledge them to him ; and they shall have their soul so 
full of the ravishing raptures of the life and glory that now 
they are in, that they shall be of it swallowed up in that 
measure and manner that neither fear, nor guilt, nor con- 
fusion can come near them or touch them. Their Judge 
is their Saviour, their husband, and head ; who, though he 
will bring every one of them for all things to judgment, 
yet will keep them for ever out of condemnation. Perfect 
love casteth out fear, even while we are here ; much more 
then when we are with the Saviour, our Jesus, being passed 
from death to life. 



SAINTS REWARDED AT THE JUDGMENT. 
Now the saved having accounted for all their evil, and 
confessed to God's glory how they fell short and did not the 
truth in this or that particular, and having received their 



SAINTS AT THE JUDGEMENT. 443 

eternal acquittance from the Lord and Judge, in the sight 
of both angels and saints, forthwith the Lord Jesus will 
make inquiry into all the good and holy actions they do in 
the world. Now here shall all things be reckoned up, 
from the very first good thing that was done by Adam or 
Abel, to the last that will fall out to be done in the world — 
the good of all the holy prophets, of all apostles, pastors, 
teachers, and helps in the church — here also will be brought 
forth to light all the good deeds of masters of families, of 
parents, of children, of servants, of neighbors, or whatever 
good things any man doeth. 

1 . Here will be a recompense for ail that have labored 
sincerely in the word and doctrine. jNFow shall Paul the 
planter, and Apollos the waterer, with every one of their 
companions, receive the reward that is according to their 
works. 

Now all the preaching, praying, watching, and labor 
thou hast been at, in thy endeavoring to catch men from 
Satan to God, shall be rewarded with spangling glory. 
Not a soul thou hast converted to the Lord Jesus, not a 
soul thou hast comforted, strengthened, or helped by thy 
wholesome counsel, admonition, and comfortable speech, 
but it shall stick as a pearl in that crown which the Lord 
the righteous Judge shall give thee at that day ; that is, if 
thou doest it willingly, delighting to lift up the name of 
God among men ; if thou doest it with love, and longing af- 
ter the salvation of sinners : otherwise thou wilt have only 
thy labor for thy pains, and no more. If I do this will- 
ingly, I have a reward ; but if against my will, a dispen- 
sation of the gospel is committed to my charge. 

But if thou do it graciously, then a reward followeth ; 
" for what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing ? Are 
not even ye," says Paul, " in the presence of our Lord Jesus 
Christ at his coming ? For ye are our glory and joy." 

Let him therefore that Christ has put into his harvest, 
take comfort in the midst of all his sorrows ; and know 



444 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

that God acknowledges that he that converteth a sinner 
from the error of his way, doth even save that soul from 
death, and covereth a multitude of sins. Wherefore, labor 
to convert, lahor to water, labor to build up and to feed the 
flock of God w T hich is among you, taking the oversight 
thereof not by constraint, but willingly ; not for filthy 
lucre, but of a ready mind ; and w^hen the chief Shep- 
herd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that 
fadeth not away. 

2. And as the ministers of Christ's gospel shall at this 
day be recompensed, so shall also those more private saints 
be with tender affections and love looked on and rewarded 
for all their w T ork and labor of love which they have 
showed to the name of Christ, in ministering to his saints 
and suffering for his sake. " Whatsoever good thing any 
man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether 
he be bond or free." 

Ah, little do the people of God think how largely and 
thoroughly God will at that day own and recompense all 
the good and holy acts of his people. Every bit, every 
drop, every rag, and every night's harbor though but in a 
wisp of straw, shall be rewarded in that day before men 
and angels : " Whosoever shall give to drink to one of these 
little ones, a cup of cold water only, in the name of a dis- 
ciple, verily I say unto you," saith Christ, "he shall in no 
wise lose his reward." "Therefore, when thou makest a 
feast," saith he, " call the poor, the maimed, the lame, and 
the blind, and thou shalt be blessed ; for they cannot 
recompense thee ; for thou shalt be recompensed at the 
resurrection of the just." 

If there be any repentance among the godly at that day, 
it will be because the Lord Jesus, in his person, members, 
and word, was no more owned, honored, entertained, and 
provided for by them, when they were in this world ; for it 
will be ravishing to all to see what notice the Lord Jesus 
will then take of every widow's mite. He will call to mind 



SAINTS AT THE JUDGMENT. 445 

even all those acts of mercy and kindness which thou hast 
showed to him when thou wast among men. He will re- 
member, cry up, and proclaim before angels and saints 
those very acts of thine which thou hast either forgotten 
or through bashfulness wilt not at that day count worth the 
owning. He will reckon them up so fast and so fully that 
thou wilt cry, " Lord, when did I do this, and when did I 
do the other ? When saw we thee hungry and fed thee, 
or athirst and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a 
stranger and took thee in, or naked and clothed thee ? Or 
when saw we thee sick or in a prison, and came unto 
thee ?" And the King shall answer and say unto them, 
" Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye did it unto one 
of the least of these my brethren, ye did it unto me. The 
good works of some are manifest beforehand, and they that 
are otherwise cannot be hid. Whatever thou hast done to 
one of the least of these my brethren, thou hast done it 
unto me. I felt the nourishment of thy food and the 
warmth of thy fleece ; I remember thy loving and holy 
visits, when my poor members were sick and in prison and 
the like. When they were strangers and wanderers in the 
world, thou tookest them in. Well done, thou good and 
faithful servant ; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." 

3. Here also will be a reward for all that hardness and 
Christian enduring of affliction that thou hast met with for 
thy Lord, while thou wast in the world. Here now will 
Christ begin from the greatest suffering even unto the 
least, and bestow a reward on them all, from the blood of 
the suffering saint to the loss of a hair. 

4. There is also a reward at this day for all the more 
secret and more retired works of Christianity. 1. There is 
not now one act of faith in thy soul, either upon Christ or 
against the devil and antichrist, but it shall in this day be 
found out, and praised, honored, and glorified in the face of 
heaven. 2. There is not one groan to God in secret against 
thy own lusts, and for more grace, light, Spirit, sanctifica- 



446 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

tion, and strength to go through this world like a Chris- 
tian, but it shall even at the coming of Christ be rewarded 
openly. 3. There has not one tear dropped from thy ten- 
der eye against thy lusts, the love of the world, or for more 
communion with Jesus Christ, but as it is now in the 
bottle of God, so then it shall bring forth such plenty of 
reward, that it shall return upon thee with abundance of 
increase. " Blessed are ye that weep now, for ye shall 
laugh." " Thou teliest my wanderings and putt est my 
tears in thy bottle ; are they not in thy book ?" " They that 
sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and 
weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again 
with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him." 



If thou indeed and in truth close in with J esus, thou shalt 
be lovingly received and tenderly embraced of Christ at that 
day, when he hath thousands of noble saints, as Abraham, 
Isaac, Jacob, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, with all the proph- 
ets, apostles, and martyrs, attending on him ; and many 
thousands of glittering angels ministering before him. When 
the ungodly shall appear there, with their pale faces, with 
their guilty consciences and trembling souls — who would 
then give thousands of worlds, if they had so many, if they 
could enjoy but one loving look from Christ — then shalt 
thou have the hand of Christ reached to receive thee, say- 
ing, Come, thou blessed, step up hither ; thou wast willing 
to leave all for me, and now I will give all to thee. Here 
is a throne, a crown, a kingdom ; take them. Thou wast 
not ashamed of me when thou wast in the world among 
my enemies, and now will not I be ashamed of thee before 
thine enemies, but will, in the view of all these devils and 
damned reprobates, promote thee to honor and dignity. 
Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom pre- 
pared for you from the foundation of the world. Thou 
shalt see that those who have served me in truth shall 
lose nothing, but they shall be as pillars in my temple and 



SAINTS AT THE JUDGMENT. 447 

inheritors of my glory, and shall have place to walk in 
among my saints and angels. Oh, who would not be in 
this condition ? who would not be in this glory ? 



At the day of judgment, Israel will be sufficiently 
weary of this world ; they will even as it were inexpressi- 
bly groan to be taken up from hence : wherefore the Lord 
will come, as making use of the weariness and groaning of 
his people, and will take them up into his chambers of rest, 
and will wipe away all tears from their eyes. 



That we are justified in the sight of the divine Majesty 
by free grace, through that one offering of the body of Jesus 
Christ once for all, I bless God I believe it ; and that we 
shall be brought to glory by the same grace, through the 
same most blessed Jesus, I thank God I believe that also. 
Again, that the glory to which we shall be brought by free 
grace through the only merits of Jesus, is unspeakably glo- 
rious and complete, I question no more than I question the 
blessed truths but now confessed. 

But notwithstanding all this, there is a reward for the 
righteous, a reward for their works of faith and love, 
whether in a doing or in a suffering way, and that not 
principally to be enjoyed here, but hereafter : " Great is 
your reward in heaven." 

Paul was as great a maintainer of the doctrine of God's 
free grace, and of justification from sin by the righteousness 
of Christ imputed by grace, as any one that ever lived in 
Christ's service from the world's beginning till now ; and 
yet he was for this doctrine : he expected himself, and 
encouraged others also to look for such a reward for doing 
and suffering for Christ, which he calls " a far more exceed- 
ing and eternal weight of glory." Surely, as Christ says in 
a case not distant from this in hand, " If it were not so. he 
would have told us." 

Wherefore a reward I find, and that laid up in heaven ; 



448 HICHES OF BUNYAN. 

"but what it is I know not, neither is it possible for any here 
to know it any further than by certain general words of 
God, such as these : " Praise, honor, glory, a crown of 
righteousness, a crown of glory, thrones, judging of angels, 
a kingdom, with a far more exceeding and eternal weight 
of glory." 

Wherefore, though in the day of judgment thou shouldst 
there slight all thou didst on earth for thy Lord, saying, 
"When, Lord, when did we do it?" he will answer, 
" Then, even then when ye did it to the least of these my 
brethren, ye did it unto me." 



SINNERS JUDGED. 

" There shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the 
just and unjust." For as the just go before the unjust in 
name and dignity and honor, so they shall, in the last day, 
go before them in the resurrection. 

Now then, when the saints have risen out of their 
graves, given up their accounts, received their glory, and 
are set upon their thrones — when they are all of them in 
their royal apparel, with crowns of glory, every one pre- 
senting the person of a king, then come the unjust out of 
their graves, to receive their judgment for what they have 
done in the body. " We must all appear before the judg- 
ment-seat of Christ, that every one," both saints and sin- 
ners, " may receive the things done in his body, according 
to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." 



" And the windows," or floodgates, "of heaven were 
opened." This opening of the floodgates of heaven was a 
type of the way that shall be made for the justice of God 
upon ungodly men, when Christ has laid aside his media- 
torship ; for he indeed is the sluice that stops this justice 
of God from its dealing according to its infinite power and 
severity with men. He stands like Moses, and as it were 
holdclh the hands of God. Oh, but when he shall be 



SINNBES JUDGED. 449 

taken away, when he shall have finished his mediatorial 
work, then will the floodgates of heaven be opened, and 
then will the justice and holiness of God deal w r ith men 
without stint or diminution, even till it has filled the ves- 
sels of wrath with vengeance till they run over. " It is a 
fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God," 



The Judge is the almighty and .eternal God : the law 
broken is the holy and perfect rule of God, in itself a con- 
suming fire : sin is so odious, and a thing so abominable, 
that it is enough to make all the angels blush to hear it 
but so much as once mentioned in so holy a place as that 
is, where the great God doth sit to judge. This sin now 
hangs about the neck of him that has committed it, yea, it 
covers him as doth a mantle. 



Doubtless before the flood had carried off the ark, others 
besides would with gladness have had there a lodging- 
room, though no better than a dog-kennel; but now it was 
too late, ' ; The Lord had shut the door." 



As the just shall rise in power, so the wicked and un- 
just in weakness and astonishment. Sin and guilt bring 
weakness and faintness in this life ; how much more w T hen 
both, with all their force and power, like a giant fasten on 
them ? As God saith, " Can thy hands be strong, and can 
thy heart endure in the day that I shall deal with thee ?" 
Now will the ghastly jaws of despair gape upon thee, and 
now will condemnings of conscience, like thunderclaps, 
continually batter against thy weary spirit. It is the 
godly that have boldness in the day of judgment ; but the 
wicked will be like the chafF which the wind driveth 
away. 

Now when the wicked are thus raised out of their 
graves, they shall, together with all the angels of dark- 
ness, their fellow-prisoners, be brought up, being shackled 



450 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

in their sins, to the place of judgment ; where there shall 
sit upon them Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of 
lords, the Lord Chief-judge of things in heaven, and earth, 
and things under the earth. On whose right hand and 
left shall sit all the princes and heavenly nobles, the saints 
and prophets, the apostles and witnesses of Jesus; every 
one in his kingly attire upon the throne of his glory. Then 
shall be fulfilled that which is written, "But those my 
enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, 
bring hither and slay them before me." 

"When every one is thus set in his proper place, the 
Judge on his throne with his attendants, and the prisoners 
coming up to judgment, forthwith there shall issue forth a 
mighty fire and tempest from before the throne, which 
shall compass it round about. "Which fire shall be as bars 
and bounds to the wicked, to keep them at a certain dis- 
tance from the heavenly Majesty. " Our God will come 
and not keep silence ; a fire shall devour before him, and 
it shall be very tempestuous round about him." " His 
throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels like burn- 
ing fire. A fiery stream issued, and came forth from be- 
fore him." 

This preparation being made — to wit, the Judge with 
his attendants on the throne, the bar for the prisoners, and 
the rebels all standing with ghastly faces to look for what 
comes after — presently the books are brought forth, the 
books both of death and life, and every one of them opened 
before the sinners now to be judged and condemned ; for 
after that he had said, "A fiery stream issued, and came 
forth from before him," he adds, " Thousands, thousands 
ministered to him, and ten thousand times ten thousand 
stood before him. The judgment was set, and the book 
was opened." And again, " I saw a great white throne 
and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and 
the heaven fled away, and there Avas found no more place 
for them ; and I saw the dead, small and great, stand be- 



SINNERS JUDGED. 451 

fore God ; and the books were opened ; and another book 
was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were 
judged out of the things that were written in the books, 
according to their works." 



" For many will seek to enter in, and shall not be 
able." They will put on all the confidence they can ; 
they will trick and trim up their profession, and adorn it 
with what bravery they can. Thus the foolish virgins 
sought to enter in ; they did trim up their lamps, and made 
themselves as fine as they could. They made shift to 
make their lamps to shine a while ; but the Son of God 
discovering himself, their confidence failed, their lamps 
went out, the door was shut upon them, and they were 
kept out. 



They will make a stop at this gate, this beautiful gate 
of heaven ; they will be'gin to stand without at the gate, 
as being loath to go any further. JSTever did malefactor so 
unwillingly turn off the ladder when the rope was about 
his neck, as these will turn away in that day from the 
gates of heaven to hell. 



It may be that when thou nearest that the dust of the 
street, that cleaveth to a minister of the gospel while thou 
rejectest his word of salvation, shall be a witness against 
thee at the day of judgment, thou wilt be apt to laugh, 
and say, The dust a witness ! witnesses will be scarce when 
dust is forced to come in to plead against a man. 

Well, sinner, mock not ; God doth use to confound the 
great and mighty by things that are not, and that are de- 
spised. 



When once the master of the house is risen up, that is, 
when Christ hath laid aside his mediation for sinners, and 
hath taken upon him only to judge* and condemn, then 



452 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

will tlie wicked begin to stand without, and to knock and 
contend for a portion among them that are blessed. Ah, 
how will their hearts twitter while they look upon the 
kingdom of glory ! And how will they ache and throb at 
every view of hell, their proper place ; still crying, that 
we might inherit life, and that we might escape eternal 
death ! 



Thus you see how loath the sinner is now to take a 
nay of life everlasting. He that once would not be per- 
suaded to close with the Lord Jesus, though one should 
have persuaded him with tears of blood, behold how fast 
he now hangs about the Lord : what arguments he frames 
with mournful groans ; how with shifts and words he seeks 
to gain time, and to defer the execution. " Lord, open 
unto us ! Lord, Lord, open unto us ! Lord, thou hast 
taught in our streets, and we have both taught in thy 
name, and in thy name have we cast out devils. We have 
eat and drank in thy presence. And when did we see thee 
hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in 
prison, and did not minister to thee?" 0, poor hearts; 
how loath, how unwillingly do they turn away from Christ ; 
how loath are they to partake of their ungodly doings ! 
Christ must say, "Depart," once, and "Depart," twice, be- 
fore they will depart. When he hath shut the door upon 
them, yet they knock, and cry, " Lord, open unto us :" when 
he hath given them their answer, that he knows them not, 
yet they plead and mourn. Wherefore, he is fain to answer 
again, " I tell you, I know you not whence you are ; de- 
part." 

this word, depart, how dreadful is it ; with what 
weight will it fall on the head of every condemned sinner ! 
For you must note, that while the ungodly stand thus be- 
fore the Judge, they cannot choose but have a most distinct 
view both of the kingdom of heaven, and of the damned 
spirits in hell. Now they see the God of glory, the King 



SINNERS JUDGED. 453 

of glory, the saints of glory, and the angels of glory ; and 
the kingdom in which they have their eternal abode. Now 
they also begin to see the worth of Christ and what it is 
to be smiled upon by him, from all which they must de- 
part ; and as I say they shall have the view of this, so they 
will most clearly behold the pit, the bottomless pit, the 
fire, the brimstone, and the flaming beds that justice hath 
prepared for them of old. 



At the day of judgment, will be tried whether thou art 
within that part of the book of life wherein all the elect 
are recorded ; for all the elect are written here, as Christ 
saith, " Rejoice that your names are written in heaven." 

Now then, if thy name be not found either among the 
prophets or apostles or the rest of saints, thou must be put 
by as one that is cast away, as one polluted, and as an 
abominable branch. Thy name is wanting in the geneal- 
ogies and rolls of heaven ; thou art not marked for ever- 
lasting life ; therefore thou must not be delivered from that 
soul-amazing misery : for there are no souls can, though 
they would give a thousand worlds, be delivered at the 
day of God, but such that are found written in this book. 
Every one of those that are written, though never a one of 
those that are not written, shall in that day be delivered 
from the wrath to come. 

But methinks, with what careful hearts will the 
damned now begin to look for their names in this book. 
Those that, when once the long-suffering of God waited on 
them, made light of all admonition, and slighted the coun- 
sel of making their calling and election sure, would now 
give thousands of treasures, that they could but spy their 
names, though last and least among the sons of God. But, 
I say, how will they fail ; how will they faint ; how will 
they die and languish in their souls, when they .shall still, 
as they look, see their names wanting ! What a pinch 
will it be to Cain, to see his brother there recorded, and 



454 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

he himself left out. Absalom will now swoon and he as 
one that giveth up the ghost, when he shall see David his 
father, and Solomon his brother written here, while he 
withal is written in the earth, among the damned. Thus, 
I say, will sadness be added to sadness in the soul of the 
perishing world, when they fail of finding their names in 
this part of the book of life of the Lamb slain from the 
foundation of the world. 



SINKERS "WITHOUT EXCUSE AT THE JUDGMENT. 
Observe, that among all the objections and cavils that 
are made and will be made by the ungodly in the day of 
the Lord Jesus, they have not one about election, and rep- 
robation : they murmur not at all that they were not pre- 
destinated to eternal life ; and the reason is, because then 
they shall see, though now they are blind, that God could 
in his prerogative royal, without prejudice to them that 
are damned, choose and refuse at pleasure ; and besides, 
they at this day shall be convinced that there was so much 
reality, and downright willingness in God, in every tender 
of grace and mercy to the worst of men, and also so much 
goodness, justness, and reasonableness in every command 
of the gospel of grace, which they were so often entreated 
and beseeched to embrace, that they will be drowned in 
the conviction of this, thaf they did refuse love, grace, and 
reason — love, I say, for hatred, grace for sin, and things 
reasonable for things unreasonable and vain. Now they 
shall see they left glory for shame, God for the devil, 
heaven for hell, light for darkness. Now they shall see, 
that though they made themselves beasts, yet God made 
them reasonable creatures ; and that he did with reason 
expect that they should have adhered to, and have de- 
lighted in, things that are good and according to God. 
Yea, now they shall see and be convinced, that though 
God did not determine to bring them to heaven against 
their hearts and wills, and the love that they had to 



SINNERS Al THE JUDGMENT. 455 

their sins, yet that God was far from infusing any thing 
into their souls, that should in the least hinder, weaken, 
obstruct, or let them in seeking the welfare of their souls. 
Now, men will tattle and prattle at a mad rate about elec- 
tion and reprobation, and conclude that because all are not 
elected, therefore God is to blame that any are damned. 
But then they will see that they are not damned because 
they were not elected, but because they sinned ; and also, 
that they sinned, not because God put any weakness into 
their souls, but because they gave way, and that wilfully, 
knowingly, and desperately, to Satan and his suggestions ; 
and so turned away from the holy commandment delivered 
unto them. Yea, then they will see, that though God at 
some times did fasten his cords about their heads and 
heels and hands, both by godly education and smarting 
convictions, yet they rushed away with violence from all, 
saying, " Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away 
their cords from us." God will be justified in his sayings, 
and clear when he judgeth; though men's proud ignorance 
thinks to have and to multiply cavils against him. 



Now shall be brought before thee and all men, how 
many stragglings God had with thy heart, on the sick-bed, 
to do thee good ; yea, and at such times, how many vows, 
promises, engagements, and resolutions thou madest before 
God to turn, if he would release thee from thy affliction 
and turn off his rod from thy back ; and yet how thou 
didst, like the man possessed, break and snap in twain all 
these chains of iron with which thou hadst bound thy soul ; 
and that for a very lust or sin. Here also will be opened 
before thee how often thou hast sinned against thy light 
and knowledge ; how often thou hast laid violent hands on 
thy own conscience ; how often thou hast labored to put 
out that light that hath stood in thy way to hinder thee 
from sinning against thy soul. Ah, Lord, what a condition 
will the Christless soul be in at that day ; how will every 



456 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

one of these things afflict the damned soul ! they will 
pierce like arrows, and bite like serpents, and sting like an 
adder. With what shame will that man stand before the 
judgment-seat of Christ, who must have all things he hath 
done against God to provoke the eyes of his glory to jeal- 
ousy, laid open before the whole host of the heavenly train. 
It would make a man blush to have his pockets searched 
for things that are stolen, in the midst of a market, espec- 
ially if he stand upon his reputation and honor. But thou 
must have thy heart searched, the bottom of thy heart 
searched ; and that, I say, before thy neighbor whom thou 
hast wronged, and before the devils whom thou hast served ; 
yea, before God whom thou hast despised, and before the 
angels, those holy and delicate creatures, whose holy and 
chaste faces will scarce forbear blushing. 



"IG-NORANCE" CONDEMNED AT THE JUDGMENT. 
While I was gazing at all these things, I turned my 
head to look back, and saw Ignorance come up to the river- 
side ; but he soon got over, and that without half the diffi- 
culty which the other two men met with. For it happened 
that there was then in that place one Vain-hope, a ferry- 
man, that with his boat helped him over. So he, as the 
others I saw, did ascend the hill to come up to the gate ; 
only he came alone, neither did meet with any the least 
encouragement. When he was come up to the gate, he 
looked up to the writing that was above, and then began 
to knock, supposing that entrance should have been quickly 
administered to him ; but he was asked by the men that 
looked over the top of the gate, "Whence come you ? and 
what would you have?" He answered, " I have eat and 
drank in the presence of the King, and he has taught in 
our streets." Then they asked him for his certificate, that 
they might go in and show it to the King. So he fumbled 
in his bosom for one, and found none. Then said they, 
" Have you none ?" But the man answered never a word. 



HAPPINESS AND GLORY OF HEAVEN. 457 

So they told the king ; but he would not come down to 
see him, but commanded the two shining ones that con- 
ducted Christian and Hopeful to the city, to go out and 
take Ignorance, and bind him hand and foot, and have him 
away. Then they took him up and carried him through 
the air to the door that I saw in the side of the hill, and 
put him in there. Then I saw that there was a way to 
hell even from the gates of heaven, as well as from the 
city of Destruction. 



XXVII. HEAVEN. 

HAPPINESS AND GLORY OF HEAVEN. 

Heaven ! It is called the paradise of God — a paradise, 
to show how quiet, harmless, sweet, and beautiful heaven 
shall be to them that possess it. 



"The street of the city was pure gold." All the vis- 
ions were rich, but this the richest, that the floor of the 
house should be covered with gold. The floor and street 
are walking-places, and how rich will our steps be then ! 
Alas, here we sometimes step into the mire, and then again 
stumble upon blocks and stones. Here we sometimes fall 
into the holes, and have our heel often catched in a snare ; 
but there will be none of these. Gold ! gold ! all will be 
gold, and golden perfections, when we come into the holy 
place. 

If a sight of sin and the love of God will make such 
work in that soul wh,ere yet there is unbelief, blindness, 
mistrust, and forgetfulness ; what will a sight of sin do in 
that soul which is swallowed up of love, which is sinless 
and tempt ationless, which hath all faculties of soul and 

Riches of Bunyan. 20 



158 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

body strained by love and grace to the highest pin of per- 
fection that is possible to be in glory enjoyed and pos- 
sessed ? 

the wisdom and goodness of God, that he at the day 
of judgment should so cast about the worst of our things, 
even those that naturally tend to sink us and damn us, for 
our great advantage. All things shall work together for 
good, indeed, to them that love God. Those sins that 
brought a curse upon the whole world, that spilt the heart- 
blood of our dearest Saviour, and that laid his tender soul 
under the flaming wrath of God, shall, by his wisdom and 
love, tend to the exaltation of his grace, and the inflaming 
of our affections to him for ever and ever. 



These visions, that the saved in heaven shall have of 
the love of Christ, will far transcend our utmost knowledge 
here ; even as far as the light of the sun at noon goes be- 
yond the light of a blinking candle at midnight. 



As there are great saints and small ones in the church 
on earth, so there are angels of divers degrees in heaven ; 
some greater than some ; but the smallest saint, when he 
gets to heaven, shall have an angel's dignity, an angel's 
place. 



What goodly mansions He for them provides, 
Though here they meet rough winds and swelling tides , 
How brave a calm they will enjoy at last, 
Who to the Lord and to his ways hold fast. 



EMPLOYMENTS OF HEAVEN. 
This love of Christ, if I may so say, will keep the saints 
in an employ, even when they are in heaven ; though not 
an employ that is laborsome, tiresome, burdensome, yet an 
employ that is dutiful, delightful, and profitable ; for al- 
though the work and worship of saints in heaven Is not 



EMPLOYMENTS OF HEAVEN. 459 

particularly revealed as yet, and so it doth not yet appear 
what we shall be, yet in the general we may say, there 
will be that for them to do that has not yet by them* been 
done ; and by that work which they shall do there, their 
delight will be unto them. Nor will this at all derogate 
from their glory. The angels now wait upon God, and 
serve him ; the Son of God is now a minister, and waiteth 
upon his service in heaven. Some saints have been em- 
ployed about service for God after they have been in 
heaven ; and why we should be idle spectators when we 
come thither, I see not reason to believe. It may be said, 
They there rest from their labors. True, but not from 
their delights. All things then that once were burden- 
some, whether in suffering or service, shall be done away, 
and that which is delightful and pleasurable shall re- 
main. 



Now, just as the gates were opened to let in the men, I 
looked in after them, and behold, the city shone like the 
sun ; the streets also were paved with gold, and in them 
walked many men with crowns on their heads, palms in 
their hands, and golden harps to sing praises withal. 
There were also of them that had wings ; and they an- 
swered one another without intermission, saying, " Holy, 
holy, holy is the Lord." And after that they shut up the 
gates ; which when I had seen, I wished myself among 
them. 



" Strive to enter in." " Enter in" — into heaven, that 
is the meaning, where the saved are and shall be — into 
heaven, that place, that glorious place where God and 
Christ and angels are, and the souls of just men made per- 
fect. "Enter in:" that thing included though not -ex- 
pressed in the words, is called in another place the "mount 
Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, the general assembly and 
church of the first-born which are written in heaven." And 



460 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

therefore the words signify unto us that there is a state 
most glorious, and that when this world is ended ; and that 
this place and state is likewise to be enjoyed by a genera- 
tion of men for ever. Besides, this word " enter in" sig- 
nifies that salvation to the full is to be enjoyed only there, 
and that there only is eternal safety ; all other places and 
conditions are hazardous, full of snares, imperfections, 
temptations, and afflictions. But there all is well ; there 
is no devil to tempt, no desperately wicked heart to deliver 
us up, no deceitful lust to entangle, nor any enchanting 
world to bewitch us ; there all shall be well to all eternity. 
Further, all the parts of and circumstances that attend 
salvation, are only there to be enjoyed : there only is im- 
mortality and eternal life ; there is the glory and fulness 
of joy and the everlasting pleasures ; there is God and 
Christ to be enjoyed by open vision ; and more, there are 
the angels and the saints ; there is no death nor sickness, 
no sorrow nor sighing for ever ; there is no pain, nor perse- 
cution, nor darkness to eclipse our glory. this mount 
Zion ! this heavenly Jerusalem ! 



SOUL AND BODY G-LORIFIED IN HEAVEN. 

" When this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, 
and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall 
be brought to pass that saying that is written, Death is 
swallowed up in victory." 

So when this comes to pass, then we shall be saved, 
then will salvation in all the parts of it meet together in 
our glory, then we shall be every way saved : saved in 
God's decree, saved in Christ's undertakings, saved by 
faith, saved in perseverance, scved in soul, and in body 
and soul together, in the heavens ; saved perfectly, ever- 
lastingly, gloriously. 

I would discourse a little of the state of our body and 
soul in heaven, when we shall enjoy this blessed state of 
salvation. 



SAINTS GLORIFIED IN HEAVEN. 461 

1. Of the soul. It will then be filled in all the fac- 
ulties of it with as much bliss and glory as ever it can 
hold. 

The understanding will then be perfect in knowledge. 
"Now we know in part" — we know God, Chrit, heaven, 
and glory, but in part ; " butswhen that which is perfect 
is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." 
Then shall we have perfect and everlasting visions of God, 
and that blessed One his Son Jesus Christ ; a good thought 
of whom doth sometimes so fill us, while in this world, that 
it causeth joy unspeakable and full of glory. 

Then shall our will and affections be ever in a burning 
flame of love to God and his Son Jesus Christ. Our love 
here hath ups and downs ; but there it shall be always 
perfect with that perfection which is not possible in this 
world to be enjoyed. 

Then will our conscience have that peace and joy, that 
neither tongue or pen of men or angels can express. 

Then will our memory be so enlarged as to retain all 
things that happened to us in this world ; so that with un- 
speakable aptness we shall call to mind all God's provi- 
dences, all Satan's malice, all our weaknesses, all the rago 
of men, and how God made all work together for his glory 
and our good, to the everlasting ravishing of our hearts. 

2. For our body, it shall be raised in power, in incor 
ruption, a spiritual body and glorious. 

It is compared to the brightness of the firmament, and 
to the shining of the stars for ever and ever. It is com- 
pared to the shining of the sun. It is said that then our 
vile body shall be like the glorious body of Jesus Christ. 
Their state is then to be equally glorious with angels. 

And now when body and soul are thus united, who can 
imagine what glory they both possess ? They will now be 
both in capacity without jarring to serve the Lord ; with 
shouting, thanksgivings, and with a crown of everlasting 
joy upon their head. 



462 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

In this world there cannot be the harmony and oneness 
of body and soul that there will be in heaven. Here the 
body sometimes sins against the soul, and the soul again 
vexes and perplexes the body with dreadful apprehensions 
of the wrath and judgment of God. While we are in 
this world, the body oft hangs this way, and the soul quite 
the contrary ; but there in heaven they shall have such 
perfect union as never to jar more. The glory of the body 
shall so suit with the glory of the soul, and both so per- 
fectly suit with the heavenly state, that it passeth words 
and thoughts. 

Oh sinner, what sayest thou ? How dost thou like be- 
ing saved ? Doth not thy mouth water ? Doth not thy 
heart twitter at being saved? Why, come then. "The 
Spirit and the bride say, Come ; and let him that heareth 
say, Come ; and let him that is athirst come ; and whoso- 
ever will, let him take the water of life freely." 



CHRIST THE GLORY OF HEAVEN. 

" For the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is 
the light thereof." Mark, though now there shall be no 
need of temple, sun, or moon, yet Christ the Lamb, or the 
man who was offered in sacrifice for our redemption, shall 
be of use and benefit; "for the glory of God did lighten it, 
and the Lamb is the light thereof." Wherefore, all that 
we who are the saved shall enjoy of glory and sweetness 
in another world, though we shall not enjoy it from God 
through Christ by and in the ordinances, yet we shall en- 
joy it through Christ the Lamb without them; for "the 
Lamb is the light of it." 

By this word Lamb he would have us understand, that 
when we are in glory, the blood, death, and bloody con- 
quest that the man Christ did get over our infernal ene- 
mies, will be of eternal use to us ; because that benefit of 
Christ shall not only for ever be the foundation of our eter- 
nal felicity, but the burden of our song of glory in all our rap- 



THE GLORY OF SALVATION. 463 

tures among the angels. It will be the blood, the blood, the 
redeeming blood of the Lamb. " Blessing, and honor, and 
glory, and power be unto him that sits upon the throne, and 
unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." It is he in whom will 
be found the seven eyes, the seven Spirits of God ; in whose 
light we shall see the heights and depths of those springs 
and everlasting fountains and depths of glory for ever. 
And indeed the conceit of the contrary is foolish. Is not 
Christ the head, and we the members ? And do not the 
members receive their whole light, guidance, and wisdom 
from it ? Is not he also the price, the ground, and bottom 
of our happiness, both in this world and that which is to 
come ? And is it possible it should be forgotten, or that by 
it our joy, light, and heaven should not be made the sweeter 
to all eternity ? Our soul is now bound up in him as in a 
bundle of life ; and when we come thither he is still the 
Christ, our life ; and it is by our being where he is that 
we shall behold his glory and our glory, because he is glo- 
rified : "For the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb 
is the light thereof." As he said, " Ye now therefore have 
sorrow ; but I will see you again, and your heart shall 
rejoice and your joy no man taketh from you." 



THE GLORY OF SALVATION. 
What a surprise will it be to them that now have come 
to God by Christ, to see themselves in heaven indeed, saved 
indeed, and possessed of everlasting life indeed. For alas, 
what is faith to possession ? — faith that is mixed with 
many tears, that is opposed with man}' assaults, and that 
seems sometimes to be quite extinguished — I say, what is 
that to a seeing myself in heaven ? Hence it is said that 
"he shall then come to be admired in them that now 
believe ;" then they shall admire that it was their lot to 
believe when they were in the world. They shall also 
admire to think, to see, and behold what believing has 
brought them to ; while the rest, for refusing to come to 



464 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

God by Christ, drink their tears mixed with burning brim- 
stone. 

What a joy will it be to the truly godly to think now 
that they are come to God by Christ. It was their mercy 
to begin to come ; it was their happiness that they contin- 
ued coming ; but it is their glory that they are come, that 
they are come to God by Christ. 

To God ! why, he is all in all ; all that is good, essen- 
tially good, and eternally good. To God, the infinite ocean 
of good. Oh that I could imagine, Oh that I could think, 
that I might write more effectually to thee of the happy 
estate of them that come to God by Christ. 



HEAVEN. 



What gladness shall possess our heart, 
"When we shall see these things ; 

What light and life in every part 
Rise like eternal springs ! 

0, blessed face ; 0, holy grace, 

When shall we see this day ? 

Lord, fetch us to this goodly place, 
We humbly to thee pray. 

Thus when in heavenly harmony 

These blessed saints appear, 
Adorned with grace and majesty, 

What gladness will be there ! 
Thus shall we see, thus shall we be, 

0, would the day were come : 
Lord Jesus, take us up to thee, 

To this desired home. 

Angels we also shall behold, 

When we on high ascend. 
Each shining like to men of gold, 

And on the Lord attend. 
These goodly creatures, full of grace, 

Shall stand about the throne, 
Each one with lightning in his face, 

And shall to us be known. 



HELL. 465 



There cherubim, with one accord, 

Continually do cry, 
" Ah, holy, holy, holy Lord, 

And heavenly majesty!'' 
These will us in their arms embrace, 

And welcome us to rest, 
And joy to see us clad with grace 

And of the heavens possest. 



XXVIII. HELL. 

Hell is a place and state utterly unknown to any in 
this visible world, excepting the souls of men ; nor shall 
any for ever be capable of understanding the miseries 
thereof, save souls and fallen angels. 

Now I think as the joys of heaven stand not only in 
speculation or in beholding of glory, but in a sensible en- 
joyment and unspeakable pleasure which these glories will 
yield to the soul, so the torments of hell will not stand in 
the present lashes and strokes which by the flames of eter- 
nal fire God will scourge the ungodly with ; but the tor- 
ments of hell stand much, if not in the greatest part of 
them, in those deep thoughts and apprehensions which 
souls in the next world will have of the nature and occa- 
sion of sin, of God, and of separation from him — of the 
eternity of those miseries, and of the utter impossibility of 
their help, ease, or deliverance for ever. Oh, damned souls 
will have thoughts that will clash with glory, clash with 
justice, clash with law, clash with themselves, clash with 
hell, and w T ith the everlastingness of misery. 

Miseries as well as mercies sharpen and make quick 
the apprehensions of the soul. Behold Spira in his book, 
Cain in his guilt, and Saul with the witch of Endor, and 
you shall see men ripened, men enlarged and greatened in 
their fancies, imaginations, and apprehensions, though not 

20* 



466 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

about God and heaven and glory, yet about their loss, their 
misery, their woe, and their hell. 



A man may endure to touch the fire with a short touch, 
and away ; but to dwell with everlasting burnings, that is 
fearful. Oh then, what is dwelling with them and in them 
for ever and ever? We use to say, "Light burdens car- 
ried far are heavy :" what then will it be to bear that 
burden, that guilt, that the law and the justice and the 
wrath of God will lay upon the lost soul for ever ? Now 
tell the stars, now tell the drops of the sea, and now tell 
the blades of grass that are spread upon the face of all the 
earth, if thou canst ; and yet sooner mayest thou do this 
than count the thousands of millions of thousands of years 
that a damned soul shall lie in hell ! Suppose every star 
that is now in the firmament was to burn by himself one 
by one, a thousand years apiece, would it not be a long 
while before the last of them was burnt out? and yet 
sooner might that be done than the damned soul be at the 
end of punishment. 



He that has lost his soul has lost himself. He is, as I 
may say, now out of his own hands ; he has lost himself, 
his soul self, his own self, his whole self, by sin and wrath ; 
and hell hath found him. He is now no more at his own 
dispose, but at the dispose of justice, of wrath and hell. 
He is committed to prison, to hell prison, there to abide, 
not at pleasure, not as long and as little time as he will, 
but the term appointed by his Judge ; nor may he there 
choose his own affliction, neither for manner, measure, or 
continuance. It is God that will spread the fire and brim- 
stone under him, and it is God himself that will blow the 
fire. Isa. 30 : 33. 



There will be no such grace as patience in hell with 
him who has lost himself: here will also be wanting a 



HELL. 467 

bottom for patience, to wit, the providence of God ; for a 
providence of God, though never so dismal, is a bottom for 
patience to the afflicted ; but men go not to hell by provi- 
dence, but by sin. 

" Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, pre- 
pared for the devil and his angels." This curse is the chief 
and highest of all kinds of curses. It lieth in a deprivation 
of all good, and in a being swallowed up of all the most 
fearful miseries, that a holy and just and eternal God can 
righteously inflict, or lay upon the soul of a sinful man. 

Now let reason here come in and exercise itself in the 
most exquisite manner, yea, let it now count up all and all 
manner of curses and torments that a reasonable and im- 
mortal soul is or can be made capable of, and able to suffer 
under ; and when it has done, it shall come infinitely short 
of this great anathema, this master-curse, which God has 
reserved amongst his treasures, and intends to bring out in 
that day of battle and war which he purposeth to make 
upon damned souls in that day. 



" The sting of death is sin." Sin in the general of it 
is the sting of hell, for there would be no such thing as 
torment even there, were it not that sin is there with sin- 
ners ; for the fire of hell, the indignation and wrath of God 
can fasten and kindle upon nothing but for or because of 
sin. Sin then, as sin. is the sting and the hell of hells, of 
the lowest and upmost hells — sin, I say, in the nature of 
it, simply as it is concluded both by God and the damned to 
be a breach of his holy law, so it is the sting of the second 
death, which is the worm of hell. 

But then, as sin is such a sting in itself, so it is height- 
ened, sharpened, made more keen and sharp, by those cir- 
cumstances that attend it in every act ; for there is not a 
sin at any time committed by man, but there is some cir- 
cumstance or other attends it that makes it, when charged 



468 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

home by God's law, bigger and sharper and more venom- 
ous and poisonous to the soul, than if it could be committed 
without them ; and this is the sting of the hornet, the great 
sting. I sinned without a cause, to please a base lust, to 
gratify the devil : here is the sting. Again, I preferred sin 
before holiness, death before life, hell before heaven, the 
devil before God, and damnation before a Saviour : here is 
the sting. Again, I preferred moments before everlastings, 
temporals before eternals, to be racked and ahvays slaying 
before the life that is blessed and endless : here is the 
sting. Also, this I did against light, against convictions, 
against conscience, against persuasions of friends and min- 
isters, and the godly lives which I beheld in others : here 
is the sting. Also, this I did against warnings ; yea, though 
I saw others fall before my face by the mighty hand of 
God for committing the same : here is the sting. 

Sinners, would I could persuade you to hear me out : 
a man cannot commit a sin, but by the commission of it 
he doth by some circumstance or other sharpen the sting 
of hell, and that to pierce himself through and through 
and through with many sorrows. 

Also, the sting of hell to some will be, that the damna- 
tion of others stands upon their score ; for that by imitat- 
ing them, by being deluded by them, persuaded by them, 
drawn in by them, others perish in hell for ever. 

Ah, this will be the sting of those that are principal, 
chief, and as I may call them, the captain and ringleading 
sinners. Vipers will come out of other men's fire and 
flames, and settle upon, seize upon, and for ever abide 
upon their consciences; and this will be the sting of hell, 
the great sting of hell to them. 

I will yet add to this, how will the fairness of some for 
heaven, even the thoughts of that, sting them when they 
come to hell. It will not be so much their fall into the 
pit, as from whence they fell into it, that will be to them 
the buzzing noise and sharpened sting of the great and 



HELL. 469 

terrible hornet. "How art thou fallen from heaven, Lu- 
cifer !" — there is the sting. Thou that art exalted up to 
heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell ; though thou hast 
made thy nest among the stars, from thence will I fetch 
thee down : there is a sting. To be pulled, for and through 
love to some vain lust, from the everlasting gates of glory, 
and caused to be swallowed up for it in the belly of hell, 
and made to lodge for ever in the darksome chambers of 
death : there is the piercing sting. 

But again, as there is the sting of hell, so there is the 
strength of that sting; for a sting, though never so sharp 
or venomous, yet if it wanteth strength to force it to the 
designed execution, it doth but little hurt. But this sting 
hath strength to cause it to pierce into the soul : " The sting 
of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law." 1 Cor. 
15:56; Rom. 7:8; 4:15. 

Here then is the strength of the sting of hell : it is the 
law in the perfect penalty of it ; for without the law, sin 
is dead ; yea, where no law is, there is no transgression. 
The law then followeth, in the executive part of it, the 
soul into hell ; and there strengthened sin, that sting in 
hell, to pierce the soul for ever and ever by its unuttera- 
ble charging of sin on the conscience. Nor can the soul 
justly murmur or repine at God or his law ; for that then 
the sharply apprehensive soul will well discern the justness, 
righteousness, reasonableness, and goodness of the law, and 
that nothing is done by the law unto it, but that which is 
just and equal. 

This, therefore, will put great strength and force into 
sin to sting the soul, and to strike it with the lashes of a 
scorpion. 

And besides these, the abiding life of God, the Judge 
and God of this law, will never die. When princes die, 
the law may be altered by which at present transgressors 
are bound in chains ; but Oh, here is also that which will 
make this sting so sharp and keen : the God that executes 



470 HICHES OF BUNYAN. 

it will never die. " It is a fearful thing to fall into the 
hands of the living God." Heh. 10 : 30, 31. 



" This shall they have of my hand; they shall lie down 
in sorrow ;" they shall lie down in it. they shall make their 
bed there, there they shall lie. And this is the hitter pill 
that they mast swallow down at last ; for after all their 
tears, their sorrows, their repentings, their wishings and 
wouldings, and all their inventings and desires to change 
their state for a better, they must lie down in sorrow. 

The poor condemned man that is upon the ladder or 
scaffold, has, if one knew them, many a long wish and long 
desire that he might come down again alive, or that his 
condition was as one of the spectators, that are not con- 
demned and brought thither to be executed as he. How 
carefully also does he look with his failing eyes, to see if 
some one comes not from the king with a pardon for him, 
all the while endeavoring to fumble away, as well as he 
can, and to prolong the minute of his execution. But at 
last, when he has looked, when he has wished, when he 
has desired and done whatever he can, the blow with the 
axe, or the turn with the ladder, is his lot : so he goes ofl" 
the scaffold ; so he goes from among men. 

And thus will it be with those we have under consid- 
eration : when all comes to all, and they have said and 
wished and done what they could, the judgment must not 
be reversed ; they must lie down in sorrow. 



THE SABBATH. 47] 

XXIX. MISCELLANEOUS. 

THE SABBATH. 

This day is called the Lord's day, the day in which he 
rose from the dead. The Lord's day : every day, say some, 
is the Lord's day. Indeed this, for discourse' sake, may be 
granted ; but strictly, no day can so properly be called the 
Lord's day, as this first day of the week ; for that no day 
of the week, or of the year, has those badges of the Lord's 
glory upon it, nor such divine grace put upon it, as his first 
day of the week. 

There is nothing, as I know of, that bears this title 
but the Lord's supper, and this day. And since Christians 
count it an abuse to allegorize the first, let them also be 
ashamed to fantasticalize the last. 

The Lord's day is doubtless the day in which he rose 
from the dead. To be sure, it is not the old seventh day ; 
for from the day that he arose, to the end of the Bible, we 
find not that he did hang so much as one twist of glory 
upon that ; but this day is beautified with glory upon glory, 
and that both by the Father and the Son, by the prophets, 
and those that were raised from the dead thereon : there- 
fore this day must be more than the rest. 



As for the seventh day, that is gone to its grave with 
the signs and shadows of the Old Testament. Yea, and 
has such a dash left upon it by apostolical authority, that 
is is enough to make a Christian fly from it for ever. 2 
Cor. 3. 



God the Father leaves such a stamp of divine note and 
honor upon this day, as he never before did leave upon 
any, where he saith to our Lord, " Thou art my Son, this 
day have I begotten thee;" still having respect to the first 
day of the week, for that and no other is the day here in- 



472 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

tended by the apostle : This day, saith God, is the day. 
" And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, 
now no more to return to corruption, he saith on this wise, 
I will give thee the sure mercies of David ;" wherefore he 
saith in another psalm, "-Thou wilt not suffer thy Holy 
One to see corruption." 

Wow shall not Christians, when they read that God 
saith, This day, and that too with reference to a work done 
on it by him so full of delight to him, and so full of life 
and heaven to them, set also a mark upon it ? " This was 
the day of God's pleasure," for that his Son did rise thereon ; 
" and shall it not be the day of my delight in him ?" 

Shall kings and princes and great men set a mark upon 
the day of their birth and coronation, and expect that both 
subjects and servants should do them high honor on that 
day ; and shall the day in which Christ was both begotten 
and born be a day contemned by Christians ? 

If God remembers it, well may I. If God says, and 
that with all gladness of heart, " Thou art my Son, this day 
have I begotten thee ;" may not, ought not I also to set this 
day apart to sing the songs of my redemption in ? 

This day my redemption was finished. 

This day my dear Jesus revived. 

This day he was declared to be the Son of God with 
power. 

Yea, this is the day in which the Lord Jesus finished 
a greater work than ever yet was done in the world ; yea, 
a work in which the Father himself was more delighted 
than he was in making heaven and earth ; and shall dark- 
ness and the shadow of death stain this day ? Or shall a 
cloud dwell on this day ? Shall God regard this day from 
above, and shall not his light shine upon this day ? What 
shall be done to them that curse this day, and would not 
that the stars should give their light thereon ? This day ! 
after this day was come, God never, that we read of, made 
mention with delight of the old seventh-day Sabbath more. 



WOMAN. 473 

" The woman which thou gavest to be with me, she 
gave me of the tree." Gen. 3. The woman was given for 
a help, not a hinderance ; hut Satan often maketh that to 
become our snare which God hath given us as a blessing. 



" And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this 
that thou hast done ?" Gen. 3. "What is this ? God seems 
to speak as if he were astonished at the inundation ©f evil 
which the woman by her sin had overflowed the world 
withal. What is this that thou hast done? Thou hast 
undone thyself, thou hast undone thy husband, thou hast 
undone all the world ; yea, thou hast brought a curse upon 
the whole creation, with an overplus of evils, plagues, and 
distresses. 

What is this that thou hast done? Thou hast defiled 
thy body and soul, thou hast disabled the whole world 
from serving God ; yea, moreover, thou hast let in the devil 
at the door of thy heart, and hast also made him the prince 
of the world. What is this that thou hast done? Ah, lit- 
tle, little do sinners know what they have done, when they 
have transgressed the law of the Lord. 



As death and the curse came into the world by a 
woman, so also did life and health : " God sent forth his 
Son, made of a woman." Yea, to show how much those 
that came after did abhor the act of the mother, this sex, 
in the Old Testament, coveted children, if happily this or 
that woman might be the mother of the Saviour of the 
world. I will say again, that when the Saviour was come, 
woman rejoiced in him, before either man or angel. I read 
not that ever man did give unto Christ so much as one 
groat ; but the women followed him and ministered unto 
him of their substance. It was a woman that washed his 
feet with tears, and a woman that anointed his body to the 
burial. They were women that wept when he was going 



474 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

to the cross ; and women that followed him from the cross, 
and that sat by his sepulchre when he was buried. They 
were women that were first with him at his resurrection- 
morn, and women that brought tidings first to the disci- 
ples that he was risen from the dead. Women therefore 
are highly favored, and show by these things that they are 
sharers with us in the grace of life. 



All the glory of this world, had not Adam had a wife, 
could not have completed this man's blessedness. He 
would yet have been wanting. 



THE FAMILY. 

A master of a family and a mistress of the same are 
those that are entrusted of God with those under their 
tuition and care to be brought up for him, be they children 
or servants. 

Look to it and consider with thyself whether thou hast 
done such duty and service for God in this matter, that, 
setting common facilities aside, thou canst with good con- 
science lift up thy face unto God ; the which to be sure 
thou canst by no means do, if iniquity to the utmost be not 
banished out of thy house. 

And will it not be a sad complaint that thy servant 
shall take up against thee before the Judge, at the last day, 
that he learnt the way to destruction in thy house, who art 
a professor ? Servants, though themselves be carnal, ex- 
pect, when they come into the house of professors, that 
there they shall see religion in spangling colors; but be- 
hold, when he enters thy door, he finds sin and wicked- 
ness there. There is pride instead of humility, and height 
of raillery instead of meekness and holiness of mind. He 
looked for a house full of virtue, and behold nothing but 
spider-webs ; fair and plausible abroad, but like the sow in 
the mire at home. 

•'Bless me," saith such a servant, " are these the re- 



THE FAMILY. 475 

ligious people? are these the servants of God, where in- 
iquity is made so much of and is so highly entertained?" 

And now is his heart filled with prejudice against all 
religion, or else he turns hypocrite like his master and 
mistress, wearing, as they, a cloak of religion to cover all 
abroad, while all is naked and shameful at home. 

But perhaps thy heart is so hard and thy mind so 
united to the pleasing of thy vile affections, that thou wilt 
say, " What care I for my servant? I took him to do my 
work, not to train him up in religion." Well, suppose the 
soul of thy servant he thus little worth in thine eyes ; yet 
what wilt thou say for thy children, who behold all thy 
ways, and are as capable of drinking up the poison of thy 
footsteps, as the swine is of drinking up swill : I say, what 
wilt thou do for them ? Children will learn to be wicked 
of parents — of professing parents soonest of all ; they will 
be tempted to think all that they do is right. I say, what 
wilt thou say to this ? Or art thou like the ostrich whom 
God hath deprived of wisdom, and hath hardened her 
heart against her young ? Will it please thee, when thou 
shalt see that thou hast brought forth, children to the mur- 
derer ? or when thou shalt hear them cry, I learnt to go on 
in the paths of sin by the carriage of professing parents ? 
If it was counted of old a sad thing for a man to bring" 
forth children to the sword, as Ephraim did ; what will it 
be for a man to bring up children for hell? Hos. 9 : 13. 



" And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred 
years, and begat sons and daughters." He lived therefore 
to see the fruit of his good rule and government in the 
church, even to see his teachable and dedicated son caught 
up to God and to his throne. 

A good encouragement to all rulers in the house of God, 
and also to all godly parents, to teach and rule in the fear 
of God ; for that is the way to part with church-members 
and children with comfort ; yea, that is the way, if we 



476 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

shall outlive them, to send them to heaven and to God 
before us. 



If parents carry it lovingly towards their children, mix- 
ing their mercies with loving rebukes, and their loving 
rebukes with fatherly and motherly compassions, they are 
more likely to save their children than by being churlish 
and severe towards them. But if they do not save them, 
if their mercy do thern no good, yet it will greatly ease 
them at the day of death to consider, I have done by love 
as much as I could to save and deliver my child from hell. 



Let them that name the name of Christ depart from 
family-iniquity. There is a house-iniquity — an iniquity 
that loves not to walk abroad, but to harbor within doors. 
This the holy man David was aware of; therefore he said 
that he would behave himself wisely, in a perfect way ; 
yea, saith he, ' ' I will walk within my house with a per- 
fect heart." 

Many that show like saints abroad, yet act the part of 
devils when they are at home by giving way to this house- 
iniquity. This iniquity meeteth the man and his wife at 
the very threshold of the door, and will not suffer them to 
enter, no, not with one foot into the house, in peace : but 
how far this is from walking together as heirs of the grace 
of life, is easy to be determined. Men should carry it in 
love to their wives, as Christ doth to his church ; and wives 
should carry it to their husbands, as the church ought to 
carry it to her Saviour, Eph. 5 : 21-28 ; 1 Pet. 3:7; and 
until each relation be managed with respect to these 
things, this house-iniquity will be cherished there. Oh. God 
sees within doors as well as without, and will judge too for 
the iniquity of the house as well as for that more open. 

A man's house and his conduct there do more bespeak 
the nature and temper of his mind than all public profes- 
sion. If I were to judge of a man for my life, I would not 



THE FAMILY. 477 

judge of him by his open profession, but by his domestic 
behaviors. 

Open profession is like a man's best cloak, which is 
worn by him when he walks abroad, and with many is 
made but little use of at home. But now what a man is 
at home, that he is indeed. There is abroad, my house, 
my closet, my heart ; and my house, my closet, show most 
what I am : though not to the world, yet to my family 
and to angels. 

To make religion and the power of godliness the chief 
of my designs at home, before those among whom God by 
a special hand has placed me, is that which is pleasing to 
God, and which obtaineth a good report of him. Genesis 
18:17-19. 



Character, of Talkative. He talketh of prayer, of 
repentance, of faith, and of the new birth ; but he knows 
but only to talk of them. I have been in his family, and 
have observed him both at home and abroad. His house 
is as empty of religion as the white of an egg is of savor. 
There is there neither prayer nor sign of repentance for 
sin ; yea, the brute in his kind serves God far better than 
he. He is the very stain, reproach, and shame of religion 
to all that know him : it can hardly have a good word in 
all that end of the town where he dwells, through him. 
Thus say the common people that know him, " A saint 
abroad and a devil at home." His poor family find it so : 
he is such a churl, such a railer at, and so unreasonable 
with his servants, that they neither know how to do for or 
speak to him. 



Domestic iniquity stands also in the disorders of chil- 
dren and servants. Children's unlawful carriage to their 
parents is a great house-iniquity, yea, and a common one 
too. 2 Tim. 3 : 2, 3. 

Disobedience to parents is one of the sins of the last 



478 RICHES Otf BUNUN. 

days. it is horrible to behold how irreverently, how 
saucily, and malpertly, children, yea, professing children, 
at this day carry it to their parents ; snapping and check- 
ing, curbing and rebuking them, as if they had never re- 
ceived their being by them, or had never been beholden to 
them for bringing them up ; yea, as if the relation was 
lost, or as if they had received a dispensation from God to 
dishonor and disobey parents. 

I will add, that this sin reigns in little and great ; for 
not only the small and young, but men are disobedient to 
their parents ; and indeed this is the sin with a shame, 
that men shall be "disobedient to parents." Where nowa- 
days shall we see children that are come to men and 
women's estate, carry it as by the word they are bound, to 
their aged and worn-out parents? I say, where is the 
honor they should put upon them ? Who speak to their 
aged parents with that due regard to that relation, to their 
age, to their worn-out condition, that becomes them ? Is it 
not common nowadays for parents to be brought into bond- 
age and servitude by their children ; for parents to be under, 
and children above ; for parents to be debased, and children 
to lord it over them ? 

This sin is, I fear, grown to such a height in some, as 
to make them weary of their parents, and of doing their 
duty to them. Yea, I w r ish that some be not murderers of 
fathers and mothers by their thoughts, while they secretly 
long after and desire their death, that the inheritance 
may be theirs, and that they may be delivered from obe- 
dience to their parents. 1 Tim. 1 : 9. This is a sin in the 
house, in the family ; a sin that is kept close ; but God sees 
it, and has declared his dislike against it, by an implicit 
threatening to cut them off that are guilty of it. Eph. 
5 : 1-3. 



Many that have had very hopeful beginnings for heaven, 
have, bv virtue of the mischiefs that have attended unlaw- 



BUNYAN'S DOMESTIC CHARACTER. 479 

ful marriages, Deut. 7 : 4, 5 ; 2 Cor. 6 : 14, miserably and 
fearfully miscarried. Soon after such marriages, convic- 
tion, the first step towards heaven, hath ceased ; prayers, 
the next step towards heaven, have ceased ; hungerings 
and thirstings after salvation, another step towards the 
kingdom of heaven, have ceased. In a word, such mar- 
riages have estranged them from the word, from their godly 
and faithful friends, and have brought them again into 
carnal company, among carnal friends, and also into carnal 
delights ; where and with whom they have, in conclusion, 
both sinfully abode and miserably perished. 



Servants are goers as well as comers : take heed that 
thou give them no occasion to scandal the gospel when they 
are gone, for what they observed thee unrighteously to do 
when thev were with thee. 



Though thy parents be never so low, and thou thyself 
never so high, yet he is thy father, and she thy mother, 
and they must be in thine eyes in great esteem. 



BUNYAN'S DOMESTIC CHARACTER. 
But notwithstanding these helps from God, I found my- 
self a man encompassed with infirmities ; the parting with 
my wife and poor children,* hath often been to me in this 
place as the pulling the flesh from the bones ; and that not 
only because I am somewhat too fond of these great mer- 
cies, but also because I should have often brought to my 
mind the many hardships, miseries, and wants that my 
poor family was like to meet with, should I be taken from 
them ; especially my poor blind child, who lay nearer my 
heart than all beside. Oh, the thoughts of the hardships 
which my poor blind one might undergo, would seem to 

* Bunyan had four children, all by his first marriage. About 
1658, some three years after his baptism, he married his second wife, 
the heroic Elizabeth. Tn IfifiO h^ was first imprisoned. 



480 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

break my heart in pieces. Poor child, thought I, what 
sorrow art thou like to have for thy portion in this world ! 
thou must be beaten, must beg, suffer hunger, cold, naked- 
ness, and a thousand calamities, though I cannot now en- 
dure the wind should blow upon thee. But yet, recalling 
myself, thought I, I must venture you all with God, though 
it goeth to the quick to leave you. Oh, I saw in this con- 
dition I was as a man who was pulling down his house 
upon the heads of his wife and children ; yet, thought I, I 
must do it, I must do it : and now I thought on those two 
milch kine that were to carry the ark of God into another 
country, and to leave their calves behind them. 1 Sam. 
6:10. 



DR. OWEN. 
What if, as you suggest, the sober Dr. Owen, though he 
told me and others, at first, he would write an epistle to 
my book, (" Peaceable Principles and True,") yet waved it 
afterwards ; this was also to my advantage ; because it was 
the earnest solicitations of several of you that at that time 
stopped his hand : and perhaps it was more for the glory of 
God that truth should go naked into the world, than as 
seconded by so mighty an armor-bearer as he. 



TRUTH. 
The truth is of that nature, that the more it is opposed, 
the more glory it appears in ; and the more the adversary 
objects against it, the more it will clear itself. 



There belongs to every true notion of truth, a power ; 
the notion is the shell, the power the kernel and life. 



It is impossible that a carnal heart should conceive of 
the weight that truth lays upon the conscience of a be- 
liever. They see nothing, alas, nothing at all but a truth ; 
and, say they, Are you such fools as to stand groaning to bear 



THE OLD AND NEW DISPENSATIONS. 481 

up that, or what is contained therein ? They see not the 
weight, the glory, the weight of glory, that is in a truth of 
God ; and therefore they laugh at them that will count it 
worth the while to endure so much to support it from fall- 
ing to the ground. 



Truths are often delivered to us, like wheat in full ears, 
to the end we should rub them out before we eat them, 
and take pains about them, before we have the comfort of 
them. 



STYLE. 
I could, were I so pleased, use higher strains, 
And for applause on tenters stretch my brains; 
But what needs that ? The arrow out of sight 
Does not the sleeper nor the watchman fright : 
To shoot too high doth make but children gaze, 
*Tis that which hits the man doth him amaze. 



Should all be forced their brains to lay aside, 
That cannot regulate the flowing tide 
By this or that man's fancy, we should have 
The wise unto the fool become a slave. 



Words easy to be understood do often hit the mark, 
when high and learned ones do only pierce the air. He 
also that speaks to the weakest, may make the learned un- 
derstand him ; when he that striveth to be high, is not only 
for the most part understood but of a sort, but also many 
times is neither understood by them nor by himself. 



THE OLD AND NEW DISPENSATIONS. 
There is as great a difference between their dispensation 
and ours for comfort, as there is between the making of a 
bond with a promise to seal it, and the actual sealing. It 
was made indeed in their time, but it was not sealed until 
the blood was shed on Calvary. 

Riches of Eunyan. 21 



482 RICHES OF BUNYAN. 

THE PILGRIM IN NEW ENGLAND. 

My Pilgrim's book has travelled sea and land ; 

Yet could I never come to understand 

That it was slighted, or turned out of door 

By any kingdom, were they rich or poor. 

In France, and Flanders, where men kill each other. 

My Pilgrim is esteemed a friend, a brother. 

In Holland too, 'tis said, as I am told, 

My Pilgrim is with some worth more than gold : 

Highlanders and wild Irish can agree 

My Pilgrim should familiar with them be. 

'Tis in New England under such advance, 

deceives there so much loving countenance, 

As to be trimmed, new clothed, and decked with gems. 

That it may show its features and its limbs. 

Yet more, so public doth my Pilgrim walk, 

That of him thousands daily sing and talk. 



NOTICES OF BTJNYAN. 



This wonderful book ; [the Pilgrim's Progress,] while it obtains 
admiration from the most fastidious critics, is loved by -those who 
are too simple to admire it. Dr. Johnson, all whose studies were 
desultory, and who hated, as he said, to read books through, made 
an exception in favor of the Pilgrim's Progress. That work, he 
said, was one of the two or three which he wished longer. In 
every nursery the Pilgrim's Progress is a greater favorite than 
Jack the Giant-killer. Every reader knows the strait and nar- 
row path as well as he knows a road in which he has gone 
backward and forward a hundred times. This is the highest 
miracle of genius — that things which are not should be as though 
they were, that the imaginations of one mind should become the 
personal recollections of another. Cowper said, forty or fifty 
years ago, that he dared not name John Bunyan in his verse, for 
fear of moving a sneer. We live in better times ; and we are 
not afraid to say, that though there were many clever men in 
England during the latter half of the seventeenth century, there 
were only two great creative minds. One of those minds pro- 
duced the Paradise Lost, the other the Pilgrim' 's Progress. 

The style of Bunyan is delightful to every reader, and inval- 
uable as a study to every person who wishes to obtain a wide 
command over the English language. The vocabulary is the 
vocabulary of the common people. There is not an expression, if 
we except a few technical terms of theology, which would puz- 
zle the rudest peasant. We have observed several pages which 
do not contain a single word of more than two syllables. Yet 
no writer has said more exactly what he meant to say. For 
magnificence, for pathos, for vehement exhortation, for subtle dis- 
quisition, for every purpose of the poet, the orator, and the di- 
vine, this homely dialect, the dialect of plain working-men, was 
sufficient. There is no book in our literature on which we could 



484 NOTICES OF BUNYAN. 

so readily stake the fame of the old unpolluted English language- 
no book which shows so well how rich that language is in its own 
proper wealth, and how little it has been improved by all that it 

has borrowed. T - B - Macaulay— Essays. 



To the names of Baxter and Howe must be added the name of 
a man far below them in station and in acquired knowledge, but 
in virtue their equal, and in genius their superior, John Bunyan. 
Bunyan had been bred a tinker, and had served as a private sol- 
dier in the parliamentary army. Early in his life he had been 
fearfully tortured by remorse for his youthful sins, the worst of 
which seem, however, to have been such as the world thinks 
venial. His keen sensibility and his powerful imagination made 
his internal conflicts singularly terrible. He fancied that he was 
under sentence of reprobation, that he had committed blasphemy 
against the Holy Ghost, that he had sold Christ, that he was ac- 
tually possessed by a demon. Sometimes loud voices from heaven 
cried out to warn him. Sometimes fiends whispered impious 
suggestions in his ear. He saw visions of distant mountain-tops, 
on which the sun shone brightly, but from which he was sepa- 
rated by a waste of snow. He felt the devil behind him pulling 
his clothes. He thought that the brand of Cain had been set 
upon him. He feared that he was about to burst asunder like 
Judas. His mental agony disordered his health. One day he 
shook like a man in the palsy. On another day he felt a fire 
within his breast. It is difficult to understand how he survived 
sufferings so intense and so long-continued. At length the clouds 
broke. From the depths of despair the penitent passed to a state 
of serene felicity. An irresistible impulse now urged him to im- 
part to others the blessing of which he was himself possessed. 
He joined the Baptists, and became a preacher and writer. His 
education had been that of a mechanic. He knew no language 
but the English, as it was spoken by the common people. He 
had studied no great model of composition, with the exception — 
an important exception undoubtedly — of our noble translation of 
the Bible. His spelling was bad. He frequently transgressed 
the rules of grammar. Yet his native force of genius, and his 
experimental knowledge of all the religious passions, from de- 
spair to ecstasy, amply supplied in him the want of learning. 



NOTICES OF BUNYAN. 485 

His rude oratory roused and melted hearers who listened without 
interest to the labored discourses of great logicians and Hebraists. 
His works were widely circulated among the humbler classes. 
One of them, the Pilgrim's Progress, was in his own lifetime 
translated into several foreign languages. It was, however, 
scarcely known to the learned and polite, and had been during 
nearly a century the delight of pious cottagers and artisans be- 
fore it was publicly commended by any man of high literary em- 
inence. At length critics condescended to inquire where the 
secret of so wide and so durable a popularity lay. They were 
compelled to own that the ignorant multitude had judged more 
correctly than the learned, and that the despised little book was 
really a masterpiece. Bunyan is indeed as decidedly the first of 
allegorists as Demosthenes is the first of orators, or Shakspeare 
the first of dramatists. Other allegorists have shown equal in- 
genuity, but no other allegorist has ever been able to touch the 
heart, and to make abstractions objects of terror, of pity, and of 
love. 

It may be doubted whether any English dissenter had suffered 
more severely under the penal laws than John Bunyan. Of the 
twenty-seven years which had elapsed since the Restoration, he 
had passed twelve in confinement. He still persisted in preach- 
ing : but that he might preach, he was under the necessity of 
disguising himself like a carter. He was often introduced into 
meetings through back doors with a smockfrock on his back, and 
a whip in his hand. If he had thought only of his own ease 
and safety, he would have hailed the indulgence with delight. 
He was now at length free to pray and exhort in open day. His 
congregation rapidly increased : thousands hung upon his words: 
and at Bedford, where he ordinarily resided, money was plenti- 
fully contributed to build a meeting-house for him. His influ- 
ence among the common people was such that the government 
would willingly have bestowed on him some municipal office ; 
but his vigorous understanding and his stout English heart were 
proof against all delusion and all temptation. He felt assured 
that the proffered toleration was merely a bait intended to lure 
the Puritan party to destruction ; nor would he, by accepting a 
place for which he was not legally qualified, recognize the valid- 
iry of the dispensing power. One of the last acts of his virtuous 

21* 



486 NOTICES OF BUNYAN. 

life was to decline an interview to which he was invited by an 

agent Of the government. T - B - Macaulay— History of England. 



The demeanor of Sir Matthew Hale in the case of John Bun- 
yan, the author of the Pilgrim's Progress, shows him paying 
respect both to the rules of law and to the dictates of humanity. 
This wonderful man — who, though bred a tinker, showed a genius 
little inferior to that of Dante — having been illegally convicted 
by the court of Quarter-sessions, was lying in prison under his 
sentence in the jail of Bedford. Soon after the restoration of 
Charles II., the young enthusiast had been arrested while he was 
preaching at a meeting in a private house • and, refusing to enter 
into an engagement that he would preach no more, had been in- 
dicted as " a person who devilishly and perniciously abstained 
from coming to church to hear divine service, and a common up- 
holder of unlawful meetings and conventicles, to the great dis- 
turbance and distraction of the good subjects of this realm/' 

Little do we know what is for our permanent good. Had 
Bunyan then been discharged and allowed to enjoy liberty, he 
no doubt would have returned to his trade, filling up his inter- 
vals of leisure with field-preaching; his name would not have 
survived his own generation, and he could have done little for 
the religious improvement of mankind. The prison-doors were 
shut upon him for twelve years. Being cut off from the external 
world, he communed with his own soul ; and inspired by Him who 
touched Isaiah's hallowed lips with fire, he composed the noblest 
of allegories, the merit of which was first discovered by the 
lowly, but which is now lauded by the most refined critics, and 
which has done more to awaken piety and to enforce the pre- 
cepts of Christian morality, than all the sermons that have been 
published by all the prelates of the Anglican church. 

Lord Campbell. 

The Pilgrim's Progress is a book which makes its way through 
the fancy to the understanding and the heart. The child peruses 
it with wonder and delight; in youth we discover the genius 
which it displays ; its worth is apprehended as we advance in 
years; and we perceive its merits feelingly in declining age. If 
it is not a well of English undeflled, to which the poet as well 
as the philologist must repair if they would drink of the living 



NOTICES OF BUNYAN. 487 

waters, it is a clear stream of current English, the vernacular 
of his age — sometimes indeed in its rusticity and coarseness, but 
always in its plainness and its strength. Robert Southey. 

No man of common-sense and common integrity can deny that 
Bunyan, the tinker of Elstow, was a practical atheist, a worth- 
less contemptible infidel, a vile rebel to God and goodness, a com- 
mon profligate. Now be astonished, heaven, to eternity, and 
wonder, earth and hell, while time endures. Behold this very 
man become a miracle of mercy, a mirror of wisdom, goodness, 
holiness, truth, and love. See his polluted soul cleansed and 
adorned by divine grace, his guilt pardoned, the divine law in- 
scribed upon his heart, the divine image, or the resemblance of 
God's moral perfections impressed upon his soul. 

Mr. Ryland. 

It has been the lot of John Bunyan, an unlettered artisan, to 
do more than one in a hundred millions of human beings, even 
in civilized society, is usually able to do. He has produced a 
work of imagination of such decided originality as not only to 
have commanded profound admiration on its first appearance, but 
amidst all changes of time and style and modes of thinking, to 
have maintained its place in the popular literature of every sue* 
ceeding age, with the probability that, so long as the language 
in which it is written endures, it will not cease to be read by a 
great number of the youth of all future generations at that pe- 
riod of life when their minds, their imaginations, and their hearts 
are most impressible with moral excellence, splendid picture, 
and religious sentiment. It would be difficult to name another 
work of any kind in our native tongue, of which so many edi- 
tions have been printed, of which so many readers have lived 
and died, the character of whose lives and deaths must have been 
more or less affected by its lessons and examples, its fictions and 

realities. James Montgomery. 



I know of no book, the Bible excepted as above all compari- 
son, which I, according to my judgment and experience, could so 
safely recommend as teaching and enforcing the whole saving 
truth, according to the mind that was in Christ Jesus, as the 
Pilgrim's Progress. It is in my conviction the best Summa The- 



488 NOTICES OF BUNYAN. 

ologice Evangelicce ever produced by a writer not miraculously 

inspired. Coleridge's Remains. 

So great was Bunyan's popularity as a preacher, that an eye- 
witness says, when he preached in London, " If there were but 
one day's notice given, there would be more people come together 
to hear him preach than the meeting-house would hold. I have 
seen, to hear him preach, about twelve hundred at a morning 
lecture, by seven o'clock on a working-day, in the dark winter 

time." Charles Doe. 



I hold John Bunyan to have been a man of incomparably 
greater genius than any of them, [the old English divines,! and to 
have given a far truer and more edifying picture of Christianity. 
His Pilgrim's Progress seems to be a complete reflection of Scrip- 
ture, with none of the rubbish of the theologians mixed up with it. 

Thomas Arnold, D. D, 



thou whom, borne on fancy's eager wing 
Back to the season of life's happy spring, 

1 pleased remember, and while memory yet 
Holds fast her office here, can ne'er forget ; 
Ingenious Dreamer ! in whose well-told tale, 
Sweet fiction and sweet truth alike prevail : 
Whose humorous vein, strong sense, and simple style, 
May teach the gayest, make the gravest smile ; 
Witty, and well-employed, and like thy Lord, 
Speaking in parables his slighted word: 

I name thee not, lest so despised a name 
Should move a sneer at thy deserved fame; 
Yet e'en in transitory life's late day, 
That mingles all my brown with sober gray, 
Uevere the man, whose Pilgrim marks the road 
And guides the Progress of the soul to God. 

Cowper. 



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